Twin Samurai
by SkyGem
Summary: Ryoma and Ryoga were separated when they were little. What will happen when they are reunited nearly 12 years later? Full summary inside.
1. Finding Out

Summary: Her name is Ryoma, and he is Ryoga. These two twins, together since the day they were born, are separated on their third birthday. One, Ryoma, goes with her father to live in America while the other, Ryoga, stays in Japan with their mother. Now, 12 years later, Ryoma returns to Japan with her father and is reunited with her brother. Though neither remembers the other, they find they share the same love of tennis. So, it is through tennis that brother and sister build an unbreakable bond and with it, the perfect doubles team. Follow these two as they take the tennis world by storm and set off on a journey to claim their rightful place in history alongside their father.

OrchardLily: Hey guys! Now, I just wanted to say that this is my first PoT fanfic so please go a little easy on me, okay? Oh, and if I've made any spelling or grammar mistakes or if you think there's something I should change, please don't hesitate to point them out. Now, I hope you enjoy my story!

**Edit**  
SkyGem: Okay, guys, I've decided to rewrite this whole story, since my writing has changed quite a bit since I last updated here, and I'm not quite satisfied with these earlier chapters. After I'm done rewriting, I really do hope I can finally get the next chapter out. Let's all hope, ne?

Disclaimer: Well, we all know I'm not Takeshi-sensei, so why bother?

* * *

_**New York city, United States, 3 PM, **_

_**Ryoma **_

"Bye Jenny! Chris!" I called as I walked towards the limo awaiting me. As I got in, something seemed odd. Mike, my chauffeur, was oddly quiet. Over the last five years he had been working for my family, the two of us had become good friends and would often chatter away the whole ride, but today he wouldn't say a word. I decided to let it go, thinking that it was something private and not wanting to be nosy.

The ride home seemed to drag on forever and when we finally got home, I said a hasty goodbye and quickly jumped out of the car.

Going inside, I was about to go upstairs to change into something more comfortable when my dad called me from the living room. That's when I realized that all the maids were acting the same way Mike had, they weren't their usual talkative selves. Starting to get suspicious, I went into the living room to see what my dad wanted.

"Hey, otou-san! Something you need to talk about?"

He looked at me for a moment, as if gauging my mood, then said, "We're moving to Japan."

"What! Moving to Japan? Why!" I asked, shocked.

Sighing, he said, "Because you're finally fifteen and it's time for you to go back home and meet your brother again."

"Home? Brother? Dad! What are you talking about? I don't **have** a brother!"

"Yes you do," said my father, "His name is Ryoga and he is currently living in Japan with your mother."

"What? Why the hell don't I know about this?" I shouted, pissed off.

He just shrugged. Fuming, I shouted, "I'm not going! Why the hell would I want to go to Japan? I've never even been there before! I don't know anyone there!"

He put on a mock hurt expression, "But you know you're mother, don't you? She comes to visit all the time! She lives in Japan!"

"That's not the same!" I cried. "And anyways, I can't just leave my friends! We've been together practically forever!"

"But you'll be able to visit them any time you want, as long as it doesn't interfere with your schoolwork," said my father, looking at me with pleading eyes.

I was quiet for a while. _I guess that wouldn't be too bad, I could visit them whenever I have a holiday from school._

I sneaked a peek at him, which was a huge mistake. His expression was pleading and begging, and hopeful, all at the same time. Finally, I sighed in defeat and asked him, "Then I guess I should get packing?"

He immediately cheered up, and got a big goofy grin on his face. "Yatta!"

I smiled. He could be so childish sometimes. Then, suddenly, he turned to me, and said, "Hurry, hurry, hurry! You have to get packing! We're leaving in three days!

"What?" I shouted, pissed off again. "And you waited until now to tell me this? **3 DAYS **before our flight?" I shouted at him.

"Well," said my dad, "I was scared, I thought you would be mad at me!"

"Of course I'm mad!" I shouted. Fuming, I turned around and stalked out of the room, heading upstairs. When I got to my room, I closed the door and started to pack. Despite my annoyance, I was actually starting to get kind of excited. From what my father had told me, I hadn't been to Japan since I was three so I didn't remember anything about it. _This might actually be kind of cool. I wonder what Ryoga will be like?_

_**Tokyo, Japan, 8 AM**_

_**Ryoga**_

"Mom? What are you doing?" I asked sleepily as I walked in to see my mom dusting and tidying one of the extra bedrooms that had been empty until just last night.

"Oh! Ryoga, honey! You're awake! I've got wonderful news!"

"News?" I asked, hearing the excitement in her voice. "What news?"

"Your dad and Ryoma are going to move back to Japan! Isn't that great?"

"Really?" I asked. "Wait. Who's Ryoma?"

She giggled and said, "Ryoma is your little sister!"

"Little sister?" I asked, shocked. "Since when do I have a younger sister?"

"Since always!" she said happily. Then, seeing my expression, she said, "Sorry, honey, but I was asked by your father to keep it a secret."

"Why?"

"Some kind of experiment or other." she said

"What kinda of experiment?"

She shrugged.

"Che, whatever," I said. "So, when are they coming?" I asked.

"In three days."

"Three days? Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"Because it was just decided today, silly!"

I nodded, not saying anything, trying to take it all in.

"Oh, and honey?"

I looked at her questioningly. "Yeah?"

"Well, Ryoma hasn't been to Japan for twelve years and won't know her way around. I was wondering if you could spend a few days showing her around?"

I became confused. "Do you even need to ask? Of course I'll show her around." I said with a smile.

Smiling, she hugged me tightly and said, "I'm so happy to have a son like you. I'm sure you'll be able to make Ryoma feel welcomed."

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SkyGem: So, what did you guys think? I hope you like it, and please review!


	2. First Meeting

OrchardLily: Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews, I really appreciated them! Anyway, from now on, all speech in English will be **bold** and Japanese dialogue will be normal.

SkyGem: Here's another edited chapter. I hope you guys like it, please do review. ^_^

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**Ryoma**

_**"WHAT!" **__shouted both Jenny and Chris at the same time. _

_Once she had finally come out of shock, Jenny asked, __**"Why so suddenly?"**_

_**"I don't know, when I got home yesterday, my dad suddenly told me that we'd be moving to Japan in three days."**_

_**"What? Three days? You mean you guys are leaving the day after tomorrow?"**_

_**"That's right," **__I told them. __**"I don't really have a choice in this, but, it's not that bad, I can still come visit you guys whenever there's a holiday from school and even stay over in the summer!" **__I said with tears in my eyes. Even though I actually kind of _wanted_ to go, this wasn't any easier because of it. I had known Chris and Jenny almost as long as I could remember and leaving them would be really hard. _

_Seeing how upset I was, Jenny tried to cheer me up by saying, __**"Well, then, before you go, we absolutely **_**have**_** to have a going away party. We'll invite all our friends from school and have a great time." **_

_I smiled, feeling a bit happier. _

_"__**So, come over to my house tomorrow at around noon, and Chris and I will take care of everything else." **_

_**"What? But I want to help!" **__I said._

_**"Oh, come on. We can't let you set up your own going away party, that would be rude! Especially since I was the one that suggested it."**_

_**"But-"**_

I was suddenly woken up by my dad shaking me and saying, "Wake up, Ryoma! We'll be landing soon!"

"Okay, dad, I'm awake," I said sleepily. As I rubbed my eyes to get the sleep out of them, I looked outside. Right now we were flying over a pretty city with lots of tall buildings and over in the distance, I could see the airport to which we were headed.

"Look over there," said my dad, pointing. "Do you see that house?"

I followed his finger, and saw something, but it was definitely not a house, it was a mansion.

"That's where we'll be living from now on," he said.

"Really?" I asked, amazed. "Wow, that's even bigger than our home in America."

"That's right. That's because the Tokyo mansion is our main one, the one in America is mansion number 2."

I was about to reply, when I was interrupted. "Please put on your seatbelts now. We will be landing soon," said a flight attendant that was going down the rows. I did as told and she moved on.

About ten to twenty minutes later, the plane had landed, and I was taking my seatbelt off. As soon as I stepped off the plane, I looked around, suddenly interested in this foreign country.

"Come on," said my father, pushing me down the stairs. Our stuff had been sent over earlier and was most likely already at the house, so we went looking for my mom and brother Ryoga.

"Ohhh! There they are," I heard a voice say behind me. I turned around and saw my mom standing there.

"Mom!" I shouted, not noticing the young man that was with her. Going up to her, I hugged her tightly, and she me.

Suddenly, I heard an unfamiliar voice call, "Oyaji!" and a young man ran up to my father and hugged him.

Turning around and assuming it was the older brother I had been told about, I was about to introduce myself when I suddenly got the shock of my life. There, standing in front of me, was a young man who looked almost exactly like me, wearing the same shocked expression that I assumed was on mine.

"Who're you?" we both asked at the same time.

"I'm Ryom/ga," again we both answered together.

"What! Father/mother!" We said, turning to them, but, they were already hugging and making out, already in their own little world.

"So embarrassing," we both said together. We looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"So," said Ryoga, looking at me. "You're Ryoma? I didn't expect that we would be twins, I was expecting a five or six year old."

"Well, that's great," I said. "Because people often tell me I act ten years too young for my age. Although, I was pretty surprised too. Dad said you were my older brother so I was expecting someone like 5 years older."

At this, Ryoga smiled and said, "Well, that's no problem because people often tell me that I act too old for my age."

**Ryoga**

_So she's Ryoma? It's weird, even though this is the first time I'm meeting her (that I can remember at least), I feel so at ease with her, as if we've lived together our whole lives. I wonder if this is that rumored 'special bond' that twins share?_

"So, Ryoga-nii-chan," she said, "What school do you go to?"

I blushed at the 'nii-chan' part and quickly said, "You can just call me Ryoga, I'm probably only a few minutes older than you anyway, and the name of the school I go to is Seishun Gakuen."

"I see," she said with a thoughtful look on her face. "I wonder if they have a tennis team?"

At this, I turned to look at her in shock, "You play tennis?"

"Of course," she said, smiling. "What, did you think that just because I'm a girl I can't play?"

"No, no, it's not that, it's just that it's such a weird coincidence, I love tennis."

"Really?" she asked, smiling. "Me too! So, is there a girls tennis team?"

"No," I said and she looked disappointed. "But there is a co-ed team."

"Really? Then that means I can join?" she asked excitedly.

"That's right," I said.

"Yay! Are there any strong players on the team?"

I smiled at her enthusiasm and said, "Of course! There are lots! And if you become a starter, you'll get to play even more stronger players at the nationals!" And so, we continued talking and, before we knew it, we were home. When we got there, though, we were suddenly attacked by a ball of fur.

"Ahh!" I shouted, startled. "What is that?"

"Oh, her? She's Karupin, my cat," said Ryoma, as she stroked the cat that was now snuggling in her arms. I was about to respond when I heard my phone ring.

"Moshi moshi?" I said as I picked it up.

_"Yo!"_ said Momo from the other side. _"Ryoga, are you free? There's an all-you-can-eat burger place that just opened and I want to check it out!"_

"Sorry, sempai, but I'm busy."

_"Busy? Are you crazy? You're too busy to go to an all-you-can-eat burger restaurant? Are you sick!"_ he asked suspiciously.

I laughed, and said, "Sorry, I already have plans, bye sempai."

"You have plans already?" asked Ryoma. "Too bad, I was wondering if you could show me around."

"Haha, that's what I meant by busy, I was going to ask if you wanted me to show you around," I said to her.

"Really?" she asked, looking excited.

"That's right, although, maybe a little later, you should be pretty tired right about now. You know, what with jetlag and all."

"Tired? Oh yeah! I am tired!" I sweatdropped at this. _Oh yeah? Well, whatever._

"I'll help you unpack and then you should go to sleep. We can go sightseeing tomorrow."

"Okay!" she said enthusiastically as we both headed upstairs to her new room.


	3. Inui Juice

**Ryoma**

When I woke up the next day, it was eight in the morning. Getting up, I went to the bathroom and did all that necessary stuff, like brushing my teeth, taking a shower, and so on. When I got downstairs, no one was there except for Ryoga.

"G'morning, nii-chan," I said, yawning.

He laughed and said, "Good morning, Ryoma. Really, how can you still be tired after sleeping for so long?"

"It's not my fault! It's the difference in the time zones!"

"Sure," he said, with a mischievous look on his face. "Anyway, where do you wanna go today?"

When he said this, all other thoughts vanished and I was suddenly excited. "Let's go to Kyoto!" I said.

"Kyoto? Do you have any idea how far away that is? Why don't we stay in Tokyo?"

"But nii-chaaan! Since I'll be living here from now on, there will be lots of time to explore! I want to go somewhere else!"

He laughed and said, "Okay, okay. We'll go to Kyoto! Happy?"

"Yay, yay, yay!"

And so, off we went. When we got there, we did lots of sightseeing and had lunch at a fast-food restaurant. After that, we went to a park and had ice cream. It was a fun day and when we got home, I was really tired.

"That was so much fun! I didn't know Kyoto was such a pretty place!" I said as I lay on my bed with my brother sitting beside me.

"So," he said, "Where do you want to go tomorrow? Osaka?" he meant it as a joke but I thought it was a great idea.

"Okay! Lets go to Osaka!"

"Huh? Wait, you really want to go?"

"Sure! It seems like fun!"

"Oh no, why did I ever accept this job? By the end of this summer, there will be nothing left of me!"

"What? Does that mean we can't go?" I asked, pouting.

He took one look at my pouting face and said, "Fine, we'll go." And so, that's how our summer went, I would find some ridiculously far away town and drag poor Ryoga there and then we would spend the whole day roaming around and occasionally getting lost. No two days were the same and, once in a while, we would stay home and just play tennis. We had lots of fun, but, as you would expect, school soon came along and ended that.

**Ryoga**

When I got downstairs, ready for school, I was amused to see that Ryoma, my fearless little sister, was actually nervous.

"Ne, Ryo-chan, what's wrong?"

"Eh? Oh, good morning, Ryo-kun, and there's nothing wrong, I'm just a little nervous."

I went up to her, and, putting a comforting arm around her, I said, "There's no need to worry, Ryo-chan, no one's going to bite you, at least, I hope not," I said, joking. "Anyways, papa made sure that we would be in the same class, so if anything happens, I'll be there with you."

She smiled up at me and said, "Thank you, nii-chan."

I smiled at her, then looked at my watch and saw that it was time for me to go. I kissed her on the cheek and said, "I have to go now, but I'll see you later, in class, okay?"

"Okay, goodbye," she said, waving.

I went outside and saw Momo waiting for me there. "Hey Momo-sempai!" I called to him.

"Yo, brat! You've got some explaining to do! Where the hell were you all summer? Because you weren't there, I had to go with Eiji-sempai and you have no idea how annoying that sugar freak can get!"

"I'm sorry! But I was busy!"

"Oh? Busy? With what?"

"I was showing Ryoma around."

"Ryoma? You ditched me for a girl?" he asked, looking annoyed.

"No, you baka! Ryoma's my sister! She came back to Japan at the beginning of summer and wanted me to show her around!"

"Sister? You have a sister? How old is she? Is she cute?"

"Yes I have a sister, she's 5 minutes younger than me, yes she is cute, and no Momo-sempai, you can't date her."

"What?" asked Momo with mock innocence. "You dare to imply that..." he trailed off as the full impact of what I had said hit him. "You have a twin sister and you didn't tell me!"

"Sorry! I would have told you but I didn't even know she existed until, like, two months ago."

"How could...Oh, I get it! You're tricking me! That's funny, you had me going for a while," he said.

"I'm not joking Momo-sempai. She moved to the states with my father when we were three and the two of them just moved back two months ago."

"Oh really? But you said you were showing her around, if that was true, we would most likely have bumped into each other at one point."

"Well, the reason we didn't see each other is because Ryoma wanted to go to out of town places like Osaka and Karuizawa."

"Oh really? How convenient. I won't believe it until I see it with my own eyes."

"Okay, fine, I'll bring her to the courts at lunch and introduce her to you."

"Okay fine, but if you're lying, you'll have to drink Inui juice!"

"Fine!"

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OrchardLily: 'Kay, this is the end of the chapter, hope you guys liked it and I would appreciate any reviews and/or comments you guys have about my fic!

P.S. She'll be meeting the regulars in the next chapter!


	4. Meeting the Regulars

OrchardLily: I just want to say thank you for all the reviews and hope you like this chapter!

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**Ryoma**

As I heard the teacher trying to quiet the class down, I took deep breaths to calm my nerves. _It's okay, it's not like they're going to eat me, right? Anyways, nii-chan is in there._ This thought, more than anything else, helped me calm down.

"Okay, class, before we start, I would like to introduce a new student. Please come in, Echizen-san." I took one last deep breath and walked in, trying to ignore the murmurs and whispers coming from inside the class.

"This is Echizen Ryoma-san, Ryoga-sans little sister. She just returned to Japan from abroad two months ago and isn't used to it here yet so please be nice to her and help her settle in."

I bowed respectfully and said, "Yoroshiku onegaishimasu."

The class was dead silent for a moment then everyone started talking at once, saying things like, "She's Ryoga's sister!" or, "I didn't know Ryoga had a twin," or, "She's so hot!" and so on.

After the teacher finally got the class to quiet down, he said, "Now, Ryoma-san, why don't you go sit over there?" He pointed to a seat on the opposite side of the classroom from Ryoga.

I started to go there but, seeing my discomfort, Ryoga said, "Um, sensei? Would it be alright if Ryoma sat beside me? She's still not used to things here and it would help if she had someone familiar to help her out."

The teacher looked at me and said, "Would you rather sit beside your brother?"

I quickly nodded my head and he smiled and said, "That's fine then, since that seat is also empty at the moment."

"Thank you, sensei!" I said as I headed towards the seat beside my brother. When I got there, I looked at him gratefully and said, "Thank you, Ryo-kun."

He smiled and said, "No prob, now, pay attention." The rest of class was really easy, considering I had learned it all before (dad made me learn all this stuff when I was, like, twelve from private tutors).

The rest of our classes went off without a hitch and it was soon lunch time.

**Momo**

"Hey guys!" I shouted to the other regulars (except for Ryoga) who were already out on the field.

"Hey Momo!" they all shouted back in unison, that is, except for Kaido and Tezuka.

"Ne, guess what! Ryoga's gonna introduce his sister to us today."

At first, they all looked at me as if I was crazy.

"Chibisuke doesn't have a sister," said Eiji in a patient voice, as if talking to a child.

"That's what I said, but apparently, she's been living with their father in America all this time, and what's more is she's his TWIN sister."

At this, their faces, which were shocked, became disbelieving and Oishi said, "A-are you sure, Momo? Maybe you heard wrong or-"

"No, I heard right, but, my reaction was pretty much the same so I asked him to bring her with him at lunch and introduce her to us. They should get here soon."

As I said this, I heard footsteps behind me and turned to see Ryoga coming towards us with a pretty freshman behind him.

When I saw her, my mind blanked out, that's how shocked I was. She was the same height as him, and carried herself the same way. She had the same golden, catlike eyes and emerald tinted hair, although hers was longer, reaching a little past her waist.

When they reached us, everyone, including me, was speechless and Ryoga had a smug look on his face. His sister, Ryoma, bowed to us and said "Yoroshiku onegaishimasu."

After she came out of her bow, she looked up at us and smiled. "Nice to meet you, I'm Ryo-kun's younger twin sister, Echizen Ryoma."

Finally coming out of their stupor, everyone started introducing themselves.

"Nice to meet you, ochibi-chan, my name is Eiji Kikumaru."

"Hello, I'm Oishi Shuichiro."

"My name is Inui Sadaharu, nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Fuji Syuusuke."

"Hello, I'm Kawamura Takashi."

"I'm Momoshiro Takeshi, just call me Momo," I said, still trying to get over my shock.

"Fssssshhh, Kaido Kaoru."

"I'm Tezuka Kunimitsu, the buchou, welcome to Seigaku."

She smiled sweetly and said again, "Nice to meet you all."

"So, do you have a guy?" I asked, only half joking.

"Actually, I do."

"What!" Ryoga nearly shouted. "You have a boyfriend? Since when? And why the hell didn't you tell me about this?"

I chuckled, an overprotective Ryoga, never seen that before.

"Well, it's not really a boyfriend, more like a one-sided love," she admitted, her expression becoming sad.

"Who? Is it a guy from America?" asked Ryoga.

"Well," she started and then whispered something in his ear.

His face then lit in understanding and he said, "I see, well, that's too bad for him, he has no idea what he's lost. You're too good for him anyway."

"Umm, guys?" I said, trying to get their attention.

Ryoma turned to me and said with a slight blush on her face, "I'm sorry, so where were we?"

"Never mind," I said. "So, do you play?"

Her face changed the moment the I said it, becoming more like her brother's. "Sure! In fact, back in America, I'm pretty well known."

"I see, then, do you wanna play against me?" I asked, excited.

At that moment, the bell rang. "How about after school?" she asked.

"Sure."

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OrchardLily: Hey guys, I just realized that when everyone introduced themselves, I forgot Kaido so I decided to change it, also, the next chapter will be updated in about an hour or so!


	5. Doubles

OrchardLily: Hey guys! The next chapter is finally out! Also, I'm sorry for everyone who wanted to see the match between Momo and Ryoma but, I really didn't feel like describing a game at that moment. You see, since this is like, my first PoT fanfic, I've never done it before and honestly, I was kinda scared. But, no worries! I'll get over my fears soon enough and you'll definitely (or maybe not) be able to see the next match. Now, on to the story!

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**Ryoma**

"Game and set to Echizen Ryoma! 7-6 games!" said Inui, who was refereeing our match. I looked around and saw that everyone, except for Ryoga, was watching me with wide eyes and open mouths. I smiled, smug.

"Anyone else want a match?" I asked sweetly.

At once all the regulars started to fight over who would be my next opponent, wanting to test their strength against mine, but, Tezuka soon stopped all that.

"No fighting or goofing off during practice, 10 laps around the field for all regulars, including the younger Echizen!"

"What? Why? I'm not even part of the club yet!" as I said this, he turned to glare at me and I quickly started to run, not wanting to upset him further.

After the 10 laps were done, everyone got to practice, but first, Inui asked me, "Ne, Ryoma-san? I was wondering if you and Ryoga play doubles?"

"Doubles? No, we've never played doubles together before, why?"

"Well, because you and Ryoga are twins, there are an infinite number of possibilities if you two were to become doubles partners. There's even a chance you two could become stronger than the Golden Pair."

"Golden Pair?"

"That's Oishi and Eiji," said Ryoga. "They're our strongest doubles team."

"That's right, and, if you and Ryoga were to team up, Seigaku's doubles will improve greatly, and that's saying a lot."

"Wait, Seigaku's? I thought only second and third years were allowed to represent our school."

"That's usually right, but, if you're good enough to catch the captains attention, which I think you already have, it's not impossible. I mean, just look at Ryoga, he's a freshman and he's a regular."

At this, I turned to look at my brother in astonishment. "You are?"

He smiled and said, "That's right."

"So," said Inui, gaining my attention again. "Would you like to try?"

"I think it's an interesting idea," said Ryoga from behind me. "I wouldn't mind giving it a try."

I thought about it for a while then said, "Okay! I've always wanted to try doubles anyway."

"Wonderful," said Inui. "We'll start tomorrow."

**Ryoga**

Later, after we arrived home and changed out of our uniforms, Ryoma and I decided to play some tennis. After a bit, our dad came and said, "Yo, brats, one of you wanna play against me?"

When he said this, I suddenly had a great idea. "Ne, oyaji," I said. "How about you play us two on one?"

Ryoma turned to look at me and I said to her, "Remember what Inui-sempai said? I just wanted to try it once."

At this, she nodded and turned to our dad.

"So, what do you say? Wanna play with us, oyaji?"

At this our father smirked and said, "I was starting to wonder if you'd ever ask."

I was shocked. "You mean, you wanted us to play doubles?"

"That's right. With the skill you both inherited from me, and your stubborn determination, you two could become the best doubles team the world has ever known!" said my father, as his voice rose near the end.

Even though that part at the beginning about the 'inherited skill' bugged me to no end, I decided to just leave it and we started our match.

At first, it was kind of awkward, but, somewhere in the third game, we started to get the hang of it. Our movements started to fall into sync and before long, we were playing as if we had been a doubles pair for years.

"Game and set to Nanjirou, 6-4 games!" called my dad as the game ended in our defeat. Then, turning to us, he said, "You guys did well! I can't believe you guys were able to do this good your first time!"

And he was right, I couldn't believe it either! Even though my style of play was pretty similar to Ryoma's, it was still pretty different too, but, somehow, playing with her had felt so natural. It had been son easy to grasp her style of play, and, by looking into her eyes, I could tell she felt the same.

Suddenly, I was snapped out of my thoughts by our father saying, "Now, I'm starved! Let's go inside for dinner!"

When my stomach rumbled in agreement, I followed him and my sister inside. We changed and showered then had a delicious dinner.

Later, I was sitting on my bed and thinking about what Ryoma had said earlier today, about the guy back in America whom she stilled loved, even after all he had done to her.

_"His name is Moriguchi Tetsuya, we met about a year ago. He and his family had just moved to America from Italy and he told me he didn't have any friends, or girlfriend, yet. I immediately fell in love with him because he seemed so gentle and sweet and we started going out, but..._

I stopped there, not able to think about it anymore. I tried to calm down, telling myself that there was no use in getting worked up about it but I was so mad! How dare he do that to my sister! With these thoughts still in my head, I drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

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OrchardLily: Well, that's it! You'll learn more about what happened between Tetsuya and Ryoma in the next chapter, which will probably be coming out soon, because it seems I have become obsessed now and am still going crazy updating. So, see you next time!


	6. Moriguchi Tetsuya

OrchardLily: Hey guys! Hehe, I told you I'd update soon right? I just didn't realize it would be this soon. Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter!

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**Ryoma**

After I had finished dinner, I went up to my bedroom and, even though I tried my best not to, my thoughts eventually turned to Tetsuya. It still hurt to think about him, I missed him so much and, even though I was still mad at him, I knew that, given the chance, I would go back to him in a heartbeat. Too bad I would never be given the chance...

_Flashback_

_Sighing disappointedly, I hung up the phone. Tetsuya had just called to tell me that something important had suddenly come up and that he wouldn't be able to go with me to the amusement park. Sighing once again, I tried to push aside my disappointment and decided to call Jenny to see whether she was free._

_"Of course I'll go with you!" she said excitedly when I asked her if she wanted to come to the amusement park with me. Lately, we had both been so busy with our individual boyfriends (she was going out with Chris) that we had hardly been able to spend any time together. Sure we went on double dates together and stuff but we hadn't had any real girl time in weeks. _

_When we got to the park, we went on lots of amazing rides and had tons of fun, but, when we decided to go to a McDonalds for lunch, I saw __**him**__. At first I thought that his important thing had been cancelled and he had come looking for me. But, when I was about to call out to him, I saw __**her**__. _

_She was a pretty American girl with tanned skin, and beautiful, silky blond hair. She had green almond shaped eyes, and a cute heart shaped face, but, I didn't see any of that. All I saw was their intertwined hands, and then, as if that weren't enough to break my heart, he kissed her! __**HE**__ kissed her! At this point, Jenny had realized that something was wrong and when she followed my gaze, she saw what I saw. I saw that she was about to go up to them and beat the pulp out of them and stopped her. She was a black-belt in kung-fu and, even after what he had done, I still couldn't bear to see him get hurt._

_"Let's just leave," I told her, looking at her with pleading eyes. At first she looked as if she were about to protest but then she decided against it. Without even bothering to finish our meal, we left and, once we were safely outside, my tears overflowed and I started crying my heart out. Jenny just held me comfortingly and stayed quiet, knowing that nothing she could say would make me feel better. _

_Over the next few days, she stayed by my side and I was grateful for her presence. She knew the pain I felt, having been dumped before herself and, when he called the next time, she spoke for me so that I wouldn't have to hear his voice again._

"_She wants to break up..." as I heard Jenny say these words, all my grief coming rushing back as I finally fully realized what this meant. I would never be held in those warm arms again, I would never again know the feeling of his sweet lips on mine, and his smile, his beautiful smile, would never again be directed at me. As I realized this, I burst out crying again and Jenny came back and held me in her arms again. _

_End Flashback_

My tears flowed again as strongly as they had barely half a year ago when we had broken up, as I remembered the love I had lost. Eventually, I fell into a deep sleep, the sleep of one who was thoroughly exhausted, and dreamed of Tetsuya. Not of the last time I had seen him, but of the fun times we had had together. All those beautiful, fun filled days. Had it all been a sham?

The next morning, when I woke up, my eyes were puffy up and had turned a hideous red. When I went down for breakfast, everyone stared but, thankfully, they didn't ask anything.

**Ryoga**

When Ryoma came downstairs, her eyes were puffy and red, I could tell that she had been crying. I decided not to say anything because I knew that it was probably that jerk Tetsuya's fault. _That jerk! If I ever get my hands on him, he'll realize that he should never have messed with my little sister!_

I was suddenly snapped out of my thoughts when Ryoma said, "Ne, Ryo-kun? Hurry up or we'll be late!"

"Huh? Oh, I'm coming!" I said and started following her.

When we got to school, we were greeted by Inui. After staring at Ryoma's face for a second, he said, "Ok, before we do anything else, you two will have a match with Oishi and Eiji, we'll see where to go from there."

"Hm? But, won't we get in trouble, sempai?"

"No, today's self practice so Tezuka-buchou won't mind if we organize matches amongst ourselves."

"Oh, I see."

And with that, we went off to do our training. The game against Oishi and Eiji was obviously very hard, which was to be expected, but, Inui was really impressed.

By the time school started, Ryoma and I were extremely tired due to the extreme training schedule that sempai had made for us. The day went by in a flash and, before I knew it, it was time for practice again. When I got there, I suddenly remembered that the intra-school ranking matches would be held tomorrow and decided to check out the match schedule. When saw it, I wasn't surprised, because, as I had expected, Ryoma had been allowed to participate. What I was surprised about, though, was the fact that she had been placed in the same block as Momo and Kaido. _This will be interesting….  
_

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OrchardLily: Sorry, this chapter was kind of short, but anyway, in the next chapter will be the beginning, and possibly the ending (not quite sure how long it will be) of the intra-school ranking matches. Also, between the three of them -Ryoma, Momo, Mamushi- I couldn't choose which two should win and become regulars, so, I'm leaving it up to you guys to decide. Go to my profile if you want to vote. The poll will be open for exactly one week so, you guys better hurry up! Anyways, see you next chapter!


	7. Kei chan

SkyGem: Hey guys! I can't believe it, after a crazy long hiatus, I am finally updating this story! Anyways, I hope you like this chapter, and please review and tell me what you thought. Now, on to the story!

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**Ryoga**

"Game and set to Echizen Ryoga, 6-4 game!" announced our referee. After shaking hands with my opponent, I looked over to the next court and saw that Ryoma had won her game too. Now, the two of us were officially Seigaku tennis team regulars.

I saw her glance my way and smiled, giving her a thumbs-up sign. Heading off the courts, I sat on a bench with my towel over my head, resting.

Suddenly, I felt a coolness on my cheek and looked up. There stood Ryoma, smiling, holding two cans of Ponta. Gratefully taking one, I gulped it down in an attempt to satisfy my raging thirst. Once done, I said a breathy, "Thanks."

"No problem."

"So, how did your match go?" she asked.

"Good. And, guessing from the smile on your face, you won?"

She nodded, her face positively glowing.

Nodding, I slowly got up and said, "Let's go see Inui-sempai. I wanna see the results."

"Okay!" she chirped happily, following after me.

Getting to the desk, we checked the results an saw the following members had become starters: Tezuka Kunimitsu, Oishi Shuichiro, Fuji Syuusuke, Eiji Kikumaru, Echizen Ryoma and Echizen Ryoga, Kaido Kaoru, and Kawamura Takeshi.

"Ayah, so you didn't get in, Inui-sempai?" asked Ryoma. "That sucks."

Smiling mysteriously, pushed his glasses up and said, "Not at all. This just means that I have to train harder. And meanwhile, I can collect information on you at my leisure."

I felt a shiver run down my spine. Sometimes, Inui-sempai could be incredibly scary.

"So, you two made it. I can't say I'm surprised," he continued.

Ryoma beamed. "Arigatou, sempai!"

After Ryuuzaki-sensei had held the post-ranking meeting, Ryoma and I decided to go with our sempai-tachi(all 8 of them) to Taka's restaurant for some food.

**Ryoma**

I was talking and joking with Momo when the sliding door to the restaurant was opened. The restaurant wasn't closed today, so that wasn't what caught my attention. Nor was it the fact that head had outrageous purple-gray hair, or his neatly pressed, rich-school uniform. No, what caught my attention was the familiar bow-down-to-me aura he swathed himself in.

Seeing, him, I let out a voice somewhere between a squeak and a squeal.

Hearing me, Momo looked down, then followed my gaze to the newcomer. His eyes widened comically, and he called, "Atobe! What are you doing here?"

Ignoring what he said, Atobe turned to me, and smirked playfully, saying, "What, don't I get a hug?"

Getting up, I half ran, half threw myself into his outstretched arms, and shouted, "Kei-chan! What are you doing here?"

He laughed lightly and said, "Hello to you too. And to answer your question, Ryo-chan, I live here. Do you not see my uniform?"

Rolling my eyes, I said, "I can see that, now. What I meant is, what are you doing at this restaurant?"

"Is it not obvious? I'm here to see you."

I was about to reply, when Momo interrupted.

"Ryoma. You know this guy?"

Turning to look at him, I nodded, and said, "Yes! Kei-chan and I are childhood friends!" Suddenly, though, a thought came into my head. "Ne, Keigo, you go to Hyotei, right?" I said, eyeing his uniform. He nodded in confirmation. "Which means you would have met Ryoga before." He nodded again. "And you didn't say anything because?"

"Because I only just met him a couple of months ago when our teams faced each other, and I haven't seen you for at least two years."

"And you didn't think to call me?"

He looked sheepish, "Sorry, I was waiting to tell you in person."

I still couldn't understand why he couldn't have just picked up on of his many cells and called me, but I just let it go. No matter how many questions I asked, I would never get how this guy's mind worked.

Momo, who had all but been forgotten, said, "Um, guys? I'm still here, you know."

"Sorry, Momo-sempai. What were you saying?"

Shaking his head, exasperated, he said, "Never mind, continue with whatever."

"Great," interjected Keigo. "Then I'm gonna have to borrow this one for a little while," he said, pulling me away.

Knowing from past experiences that I wouldn't be able to change his mind, I let him pull me away, shouting a hasty goodbye to Momo and Eiji, who had been quiet during this whole ordeal. By now, we had arrived at the limo, and I began digging around in my bag for my phone.

Dialing in Ryoga's number, I waited to pick up.

"Ryoma?" he asked confusedly when he picked up.

"Hey, Ryo-kun. Sorry, but I'm going ahead, okay?"

"Umm, okay?" he said, and I could tell he was still confused. "And you are calling me as opposed to physically coming upstairs because?"

Ryoga and the others had all gone up to Taka's room to play video games.

"Cause a certain Atobe Keigo dragged me out before I could do anything," I said, giving Keigo a pointed glance. He just smiled playfully back at me.

"Atobe?"

"I'll explain later. So, I'll be home in a few hours, okay? Tell papa that I'm out with Kei-chan."

He still sounded confused, but said, "Yeah, I'll tell him."

Saying our goodbyes, we hung up, and I turned to Keigo. "So," I said cheerfully. "Where are we going?"

He smirked, and said, "Ice skating."

I looked at him, horrified. "What?" I felt like strangling him. "Do you want me to kill you?"

He laughed. "Don't worry, everything will be fine. Trust me!"

I groaned, knowing that there was no way I was gonna get out of this. Why, of all places, was he gonna drag me to an ice rink?

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SkyGem: So, whatcha think? I know this chapter was kinda boring, but please review anyway. Also, I'm kinda at a blank as to what should happen next, so, send in some ideas! Why do you guys think Ryoma isn't so excited at the idea of going skating? Send in you ideas! Also, at the moment, there is no fixed pairing for this story. I'm debating between Royal Pair and Pillar Pair. What do you guys think? Or do you just want her to get back together with Tetsuya? And I'm saying this right now, there is absolutely zero chance of Ryocest, so don't bother.


	8. Figure Skating

SkyGem: Hey all! Thank you so much to those who reviewed last chapter, and from now on. I'm hoping to get a new chapter out every few days. Let's keep our fingers crossed, ne? Maybe it'll be every day. Well, enough of my babbling, on to the story!

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**Ryoma**

As the limo pulled to a stop in front of a huge mansion, I turned to look at Keigo, and eyebrow raised. "You have a skating ring in your house?"

He looked me in the eye and said, "Yes. You got a problem with it? Or would you prefer having your rehabilitation sessions at a public rink?" At this, he raised his eyebrow.

Quickly shaking my head, I said, "No, no, this is fine."

Smiling, he stepped out of the limo, and held his out his hand to help me out, not saying anything. Sighing, I took his hand, and let him help me, then followed him to inside.

Once inside, I found I recognized it. Every bit of furniture, every hall and staircase, everything was the exact same as his mansion in America. Having a good idea of where the rink would be located, I headed straight for the stairs, and started descending to a lower floor, Keigo following right beside me. Getting to the lower floor, I dropped back a bit, and let Keigo take the lead, starting to get a bit nervous.

Going down a brightly lit hallway, we finally arrived in a huge room, the whole floor a rink except a 2 meter frame along the walls, with no glass or walls separating the rink from the rest of the room. It was kind of chilly, but, even after all these years, that didn't bother me, I was still used to it.

"So, are you ready?" asked Atobe, smirking playfully.

I shook my head.

"What? Why?"

"I don't have my skates," I said, grasping for straws.

He raised an eyebrow, saying, "I have a pair for you."

I groaned. "I was scared you would say that."

"Ryoma, it's already been 2 years, don't you think you should be back on the ice by now?"

_Flashback_

"_And next! The one hailed as a figure skating prodigy! Everyone, I'd like to present to you, the young Miss Ryoma Echizen!" called the announcer._

_Taking a deep breath, I stepped into the rink. I smiled at the crowd, waved once, and made my way to the centre of the rink. Taking a deep breath, I started my performance. My heart was beating a mile a minute, but I continued my routine. I had competed hundreds of times, and I had practiced this routine for hours, and hours, I had complete confidence in myself._

_Then, it happened. Halfway through my routine, I was supposed to do an axel spin, then land just inches from the wall, but, in all my preparations, there was one thing I had failed to notice. The rink in which the competition was being held was five feet smaller than the one I was used to. This miscalculation led to my crashing head first into the wall._

_Falling to the floor, I first heard total and complete silence, then the arena burst into frantic yelling. My father ran onto the ice and up to me, shouting, "Ryoma! Are you okay?"_

_Before I could answer to him, I lost consciousness, and the next time I opened my eyes, I was in the hospital._

_End Flashback_

I shuddered at the memory. "Kei-chan, I-I can't go back out on the ice!" I said, looking down at the scar on the palm of my hand where the blade of one of my skates had cut me.

Seeing me staring at my scar, Keigo gently took my hand, and brushed his lips lightly over the scar. As my face lit up like a tomato, his eyes closed and he said, "Ryoma, I know you're scared, but the only way to make your fears go away is to face them. Don't you remember how much you used to love figure skating?"

I remained quiet.

"Almost as much as tennis," he said, and I couldn't deny it. "Please," he pleaded. "Just one more time."

I looked at him, and smiled a tiny smile. He took this as a submission, and grinned widely, planting an almost brotherly kiss on my cheek. Trying to hide the blush that was rising in my cheeks, I turned away, and picked a pair of skates hanging from a hook on the wall that I hadn't seen before.

Sitting on a bench, I pulled the skates on as Keigo did the same. Taking a deep breath, I got up, and walked the short distance to the ice. Once I arrived at the edge of the ice, I looked back at Keigo, and he threw me an encouraging smile. Returning his smile, I stepped out, and immediately fell down.

"Ryoma!" called Keigo, running up to me. "Are you okay?"

Looking up at him, I let out a small laugh. "Well, I guess this is what comes from staying off the ice for so long."

He looked relieved that I wasn't going to give up, and said, "You just need to get used to it again."

I nodded, and got back up. Twenty minutes and 13 faceplants later, I finally started to get the hang of it again, and was soon jumping and twirling all over the place. I had forgotten how much I absolutely loved skating. It felt like I was flying! Now that I was back on the ice, I never wanted off.

A few hours later, when I was finally tired, Atobe and I decided to go back upstairs for some ice cream. Stepping out into the hallway, I immediately felt suffocated. Compared to the temperature on the rink, it felt like I was in an oven.

Arriving back upstairs, I immediately felt a wall of air-conditioned air hit me, and I felt so much better. Heading over to his oversized kitchen, I took an ice cream drumstick out of the freezer and threw it to him, getting one for myself one too.

After devouring the whole thing I looked over at Keigo to see that he was staring at me.

Feeling a bit self-conscious, I asked, "I-is there something wrong, Kei-chan?"

"There's a little ice cream on your lip," he said a bit absently. "Here, let me get it for you."

I nearly fainted as he leaned in close to me, and pressed his lips to mine.

* * *

**Ryoga**

Walking through the living room, I called to my dad, "Hey, oyaji!"

Looking up from the paper he was reading, he seemed surprised to see me alone.

"Ryoga! Where's your sister?"

"She told me to tell you that she's out with "Kei-chan,"" I said making air quotes around the Kei-chan part.

He smiled, saying, "Ah, so he's found her already? That was pretty fast."

Going up to sit beside him, I asked, "Ne, oyaji, how does Ryoma know Atobe anyway?"

He laughed, and said, "Those two have been friends for ten years now."

"Ten years?" I exclaimed, surprised.

He nodded. "You see, he actually lived in the same neighborhood as us for about four years before they moved to Italy, and then here, to Japan. They met at a party his father was holding, and being the only two their age that were there, they spent the whole night together, and before long, they were inseparable."

I nodded, "I see. And what would you do if she started going out with him?"

His smile suddenly became very much like Fujii-sempai's, and he said in a calm voice, "If he so much as lays a hand on my little girl, he would find his family business completely bankrupt. Why do you ask?"

Shuddering, I said, "No-nothing. Just curious. Anyways, I gotta go do my homework. See you later, otou-san."

He just continued smiling, then looked back to his paper. I shuddered. I suddenly felt very scared for Atobe.

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SkyeSyren: Aww, poor Keigo, so blissfully unaware of what's gonna happen to him once Nanjiroh finds out what he's done. Anyways, please review, and tell me what you thought of this chapter. Also, if you guys have any ideas for the story, please, do tell, I'm running out of ideas. . Well, until next time, sayonara!


	9. Paintball

**Ryoma**

"Ryoga, are you sure about this?" I asked my brother uncertainly.

He just laughed, turning me to look in the mirror. "You look awesome!"

Looking at myself in the mirror, I was flabbergasted. I didn't know what I expected, but I sure didn't expect what I saw. I was wearing a black spaghetti strap tank top over a pair of baggy black jeans, originally from my brother's closet, and a pair of black high tops. My long black hair had been cut into a messy bob, and was currently in pigtails. I was also wearing a pair of black wrist-warmers. Even I had to admit I looked awesome.

My grin stretched from ear to ear. "I love it!"

He laughed. "I knew you would. Now, wait here. I'll be back in a second."

As he turned to leave, I turned back to the mirror and was still surprised. It had been a long time since I'd worn clothes like this.

_Flashback_

_Feeling a pair of strong arms wrap around my waist, I leaned back and looked up through my lashes at my boyfriend. Smiling, I said, "Hey, Tetsuya!"_

_Smiling back, he leaned down, and gave me a peck on the lips. "Hey, Ryoma."_

_Breaking out of his embrace, I smiled, and asked excitedly, "So, what do you think of my new outfit?"_

_He eyed my skull and crossbones t-shirt and blue high tops warily. "It's…..umm, nice."_

_A slight crease formed between my eyebrows, and I asked, "Is there something wrong?"_

"_Well, Ryoma, haven't you ever thought of your position?"_

"_Position?"_

"_You're from one of the richest families around, and yet you dress like that, and act like a tomboy. You should be a little more refined."_

"_But I like the way I am."_

_Wrapping his arms around my waist again, he tipped my chin up, and said, "Please? For me?"_

_Caving in, I nodded a little uncertainly, and said, "Okay."_

_Smiling happily, he kissed me on the forehead, and said, "Thank you."_

_End Flashback_

Coming back in, Ryoga snapped me out of my thoughts by saying, "So, what do you think?"

I looked over at him, I couldn't help but smile. He was dressed exactly the same as me, except that instead of wearing a tank top, he was wearing a black t-shirt. "You look wonderful!"

Laughing, he said, "Thanks! Now come on, or we'll be late meeting up with the others."

Getting up, I followed him out and to the car. "Where are we going, anyway?" I asked.

He grinned at me, seeming very excited, but stayed quiet.

"Come on! Tell me! The suspense is killing me!"

"Paintball."

"What? Did you just say-?"

He nodded.

Hugging him, I squealed. "Yay! I love paintball!"

He laughed. "I know."

I kept babbling the whole way, and before I knew it, we had arrived. Stepping out of the car, I saw that everyone had already arrived.

**Eiji**

I was talking to Oishi when suddenly; we heard a car pull up. I turned around in time to see Ryoga step out of the car, followed by Ryoma, only she looked completely different. She had cut her long hair, and was dressed the same way as Ryoga. Although she was completely different from the image that she usually portrayed of herself, she seemed more comfortable than I had ever seemed of her, and that was when I realized it. She was a tomboy, through and through.

Noticing me staring at her, she smiled, and shouted, "Hey, Eiji-sempai!"

Breaking out of my stupor, I ran over to her, and greeted her with a glomp. "Ochibi-chaaaan! You look different!"

She laughed. "I look weird, right?"

I shook my head frantically, saying, "No! You look really pretty!"

Seeing a blush rise in her cheeks, I almost blushed myself, feeling oddly shy. Quickly withdrawing my arms, I immediately shouted, "I'm on ochibi-chan and Ryoga's team!"

"Eiji, there can't be more than two people on a team," said Inui patiently.

"What? Why?" Eiji whined.

"Because it's against the rules."

Pouting, I said, "Fine. Then Oishi is my partner."

By the time we arrived at the arena, the teams had already been decided. They went as follows: Oishi and I were red, Taka and Momo were yellow, Inui and Kaido were green, Tezuka and Fujii were blue, and the Echizen twins had chosen hot pink (probably Ryoma's idea).

After having purchased the paintballs, we waited while the twins put on hoodies (exposed arms were not allowed for safety reasons), then began the game.

**45 minutes later…**

There were only 5 minutes left in the game, and the only people left were me, Ryoma and Ryoga.

Looking carefully out from behind my shelter, I saw Ryoma, propped up against a barricade, her gun nowhere to be seen. Her head was tilted down towards the floor, so I couldn't see her expression. She didn't seem to be out yet, and there was no sign of Ryoga, so I brought up my gun, getting ready to shoot her, when suddenly, she let out a sob. Worried that she might be hurt, I ran up to her, and knelt down beside her, saying, "Ryoma-chan? Is there something wrong?"

She didn't respond, and that was when I started to get a bad feeling. "Ryoma?" I said again, and this time, she looked up. Only, it wasn't her, but her brother Ryoga. He had put his hair into pigtails, and because he was wearing the same clothes as his sister, he looked just like her. Pulling a face, he said, "Busted sempai!"

Suddenly, I felt an impact on the back of my arm and looked down to see that there was bright pink paint all over my arm.

Just then, the referee blew the whistle, and someone let out a loud whoop from behind me. Turning around, I saw Ryoma run over, and throw her arms around her brother. "We did it!"

I was still dazed by the time we rejoined the others, then I turned to Ryoga, and said, "That's no fair, chibisuke! Why did you trick me?"

Laughing, he said, "Hey, all's fair in love and war. And besides, Ryoma came up with the idea, not me."

I looked at her, shocked.

Sticking out her tongue playfully, she laughed and said in a teasing way, "It's sempai's fault for falling for it."

I was about to retaliate, but realized that I couldn't. I was too busy blushing, because I suddenly realized something. I had fallen for my new kouhai.

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SkyeSyren: So, whatcha guys think? Please review and the next chapter will be out soon enough! Ciao!

P.S. Also, thanks to the anonymous review Anni for the awesome ideas ^^ I'll be using some of them.

P.P.S. I have a new story called Sticks and Stones. If y'all haven't read it yet, then what are ya waiting for?


	10. Eating Out

**Inui**

After our game, Tezuka, whom we had argued with for almost 3 hours to get him to come, went immediately home, but the rest of us decided to go out for ice cream. We all piled into Oishi and Taka's cars (AN: remember they're in high school), and in about 20 minutes, we arrived.

Our group alone took up two tables, and everyone kept staring at us (probably because we all had splashes of paint on our clothes).

"Ne, Inui-sempai?" asked Ryoma, who was sitting beside me.

Looking over at her, I said. "Yes?"

"How come you're such a bad aimer?"

I immediately felt a blush creep onto my face. "W-well, I've never had good hand-eye coordination, and-"

"But you're good at tennis," she said, cutting me off.

Momo, who had been listening in on our conversation, burst out laughing.

Gesturing for her to come closer, he said to Ryoma in a loud whisper, "That's only because he's been playing tennis all his life. It's kind of like second nature to him. He sucks at most other sports."

"Momo!" I nearly shouted as Ryoma began to laugh.

"Yes, sempai?" he asked, his face the picture of innocence.

"Shut up!"

Shaking his head, he said, "Tsk tsk tsk, no need for such foul language, sempai."

"Why you-" I started to say, but was interrupted by Ryoma again.

"Aww, we were just teasing. Please forgive us, sempai."

Not knowing what to say, I just stuttered out an, "A-alright."

She just smiled, and Momo snickered.

I looked at him, suspicious. "What's so funny?"

He looked at me from the corner of his eyes, snickering amusedly. "Inui-sempai has a crush on Ryoma-chan."

Blushing fiercely, I said, "What? Who said I had a crush on her?"

"Then why are you blushing?"

"Idiot! She's my kouhai! Of course I would be embarrassed if someone thought I liked her."

"What? You don't like me? Is it because I'm not pretty?" asked Ryoma, her eyes a bit teary.

"What? N-no! That's not what I meant! You're very pretty! It's just that…" I trailed off, not knowing what to say.

She just started giggling, and said, "Don't worry, Inui-sempai. I know what you meant. It's just fun to tease you."

Putting my head in my hands, I sighed. "You're evil, you know that?" I said, not looking at her.

"So I've been told."

I couldn't help but smile. Despite all my denials, the truth was, I was actually starting to fall for her.

**Momo**

I studied Inui carefully. This was the first time I had seen him go so long without writing in his notebook, further proving my theory that he liked her. For some reason, this knowledge bugged me.

"Ne, Ryoma," I said, stealing her attention.

Turning to look at me expectantly, she said, "Yes, sempai?"

"Umm…." I trailed off, not knowing what to say. I hadn't actually thought it out; I had only claimed her attention so that she would stop talking to Inui. "Well, you know so much about us, but we hardly know anything about you. What was it like living in America?"

She smiled. "It was wonderful! There were so many different people there! Although, I think I like living here better."

"You do?" I asked, pleased.

She nodded, grinning. "Yeah! It's so beautiful here, and it's awesome being with Ryoma again. Not to mention all the awesome new people I've met."

"Does that include us?"

"But of course!" she exclaimed, grinning.

As soon as she finished her sentence, she was attacked by Eiji.

"Aww! Ochibi-chan's so nice!"

And so appeared another rival.

I was about to interrupt, when I hear a ring.

"Oh!" exclaimed Ryoma. "That's my phone!"

Picking it up, she said, "Moshi moshi?"

She was silent for a second, then a bright blush lit up her face.

"Ah, yeah, I'll be there soon. Yeah, bye!"

Curious and more than a little jealous, I asked, "Who was that?"

Quickly dialling in a new number, she said, "It was Kei-chan. I forgot I was supposed to meet up with him."

"Gah! Atobe again?"

She giggled. "You don't seem to like him much."

"Damn right I don't!"

She was about to reply, when whoever's number she had dialled picked up the phone. After saying something unintelligible in English, she turned back to me.

"Who was that?" I asked.

"That was Kris, my chauffeur."

"I see…" I trailed off.

Getting up, she kissed Ryoga's cheek, then said to everyone, "Sorry, guys, that I have to leave so soon! I'll see you guys later. Ja ne!"

As soon as she was gone, I turned to Inui and Eiji. "Temporary truce?" I asked, holding my hand out to them.

* * *

SkyeSyren: Okay, so I know this chapter wasn't all that awesome, and it was pretty short, but please review and tell me what you thought ^^ And until next chapter, ja ne!


	11. Seeing Ten

**Ryoma**

"Kei-chan!" I called, attacking him from behind.

Looking down at me, he smiled. "Took you long enough! Now let's go! We're going to be late!" he said, pulling me towards the limo he had waiting for us.

"Ah, gomen, I was playing paintball with Ryoga and my sempai-tachi," I said, climbing in.

"I can tell," he said, looking down at my paint spattered clothes.

Suddenly, I became very self-conscious. Would he be embarrassed being seen with me like this?

Kissing my cheek, he said, "It looks cute on you. Very stylish."

I blushed, remembering the day we started going out…

_Flashback_

_As Atobe pulled away from the kiss, I stared at him, unable to comprehend what had happened._

_He turned his face away, his cheeks redder than a tomato._

_I just kept staring at him, not knowing how to react. After a few moments of silence, he peeked over, his expression curious._

"_Ryo-chan?" he said in the voice of a child caught doing something he shouldn't be._

_I took one look at him, and couldn't help but laugh._

_He was shocked. "Ryo-chan! That's not nice! And here I was being all serious. Thanks for ruining my confession!"_

_Stifling my laughter, I said, "Sorry, it's just, you looked so cute…Wait…confession?"_

_Immediately, his face became red again and he said, "A-ah. You see, I really like you, a-and was wondering…will you go out with me?"_

_I was quiet for a moment, then smirked. "On one condition."_

"_Condition?"_

_I smiled. "Kiss me?"_

_End Flashback_

Thinking back on it, I couldn't help but laugh. Kei always seemed so sure of himself, so confident in his abilities, it was quite funny to see him get so flustered over a confession, but it was also quite endearing.

Looking at me curiously, he asked, "What's so funny?"

I smirked. "Nothing. Nothing at all."

He left me alone then, obviously deciding that it would be to his benefit to remain ignorant of the inner workings of my mind.

"So," I said. "Where are we going first?"

"We're going to see Ten," he said.

"Really? We're going to see Ten? Yay! But…why?"

"She's the only one I trust to get you ready for the party," he said.

_Flashback_

"_Ne, Keigo?" I asked warily._

_He looked at me with a curious expression on his face. "Yes?"_

"_I know I'm going to regret this, but isn't this around the time of year where you start preparing for your birthday party?"_

_His face lit up like a kid's on Christmas. "I thought you'd never ask!"_

_I began to get a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. Although Kei and I were childhood friends I really did love him very much, he did tend to go overboard sometimes._

_Seeing my expression, he laughed and said, "Come on, don't look so scared! This time I'm keeping it on the down-low. I'm holding it at my house with only a few hundred guests."_

_I sweatdropped. _How is a few hundred guests on the "down-low"?

_He suddenly gathered me into a bone-crushing hug and said, "This year is special, so I only want the most important of people there!"_

_This peaked my interest. "Why is this year so important?"_

_He smirked. "You'll find out."_

_End Flashback_

"So, Kei-chan," I began. "Am I going to find out why this year is so important?"

He looked down at my hopeful face and smirk. "Not yet."

I pouted. "Why not?"

He leaned in so close, I could smell his spicy cologne, and feel his breath on my face. Pecking me on the lips, he said, "Because I want it to be a surprise."

Letting out a disgruntled sigh, I said, "Fine."

After a few moments of silence, he let out a cheery, "Oh, we're here!"

We were in front of a gigantic high-rise. Walking into the cheery lobby, I couldn't help staring. This was my first time being here.

Going up to the secretaries, Kei said, "Hello, we have an appointment with a miss Jelly Woods*."

"Ah, yes, Atobe Keigo-sama and Echizen Ryoma-sama, Miss Woods is waiting for you in her office. Would you like some assistance in getting there?" asked one of the secretaries.

"Oh, it's quite alright," replied Keigo. "We can find it without a problem. Come, Ryoma."

Following him to the elevator, I said, "Wow, I can't believe she works here! This is amazing! Her office in America is nothing compared to this!"

"Well, of course not," he said. "This here is her main base, where she meets most of her clients. It's obviously going to be much bigger than the one in America."

By now we had arrived at her office and Kei opened the door without even bothering to knock.

"Ryoma!" squealed the shorter woman as soon as she saw me, throwing herself at me.

Laughing, I said, "Hey Ten! Long time no see, huh?"

"Way too long! You have no idea how happy I was when I found out that I was going to see you again! You've grown so much! And so pretty too!"

Blushing self-consciously, I said, "Thanks. And you still don't look a day over 16." I loved Ten like an older sister, but even I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared of her. The make-up artist was already in her thirties, and she literally looked 16.

"Oh, you're exaggerating!" she said, smiling. "Anyways, let's get down to business, ne? What's the occasion this time?"

"Keigo's birthday," I said.

"Hmm, his birthday?" she said, walking around me, inspecting every inch of my face and body.

"Yeah, and one more thing," said Kei, leaning in close to whisper something into her ear.

Her eyes widened at what she heard and she looked at me as if seeing me in a new light.

"So make sure it's something special," he said, pulling away.

"Of course!" she said, seeming a hundred times more excited than before. "I will do my absolute best!"

* * *

SkyeSyren: Hehehe, what do you guys think our little Kei-chan is planning? I can tell you, it's something totally and completely over the top. Do you wanna know what it is? Well you'll just have to wait till next chapter. When will the next chapter be out? I don't know. But one thing I do know, is that reviews help! So click that little green button and make this author happy.

*Jelly Woods- okay, so I borrowed her from Skip Beat! which means she isn't my character, and she doesn't belong to Konomi-sensei either. She belongs to Nakamura Yoshiki-sensei. If you haven't read Skip Beat! yet, then go read it now! Lol, it really is very scary how young Jelly looks. Oh, and in case y'all were wondering, Ten is a nickname only those closest to her may use.


	12. Keigo's Birthday

**Ryoma**

The last few weeks had flown by so fast and before I knew it, there were only 3 hours left until the party. I was currently in my huge bathroom with Ten fixing my make-up. I had been here for two hours already and probably wouldn't be finished until just before it was time to leave for the party.

The mirror had a sheet over it because I was prohibited from seeing myself until everything was done.

Waiting for Ten to finish with my makeup and hair, I thought back to last week, when I had officially introduce Keigo to my father as my boyfriend…

_Flashback_

"_Tadaima!" I called, walking into the foyer._

_Prancing out of the living room, my father came over to me and hugged me. He didn't seem to notice Kei until he said, "Ojamashimasu!"_

_Looking over at him, my father smiled and said, "Keigo! So nice of you to visit! Long time no see!"_

_Nodding his head in acknowledgement, Kei said, "Good to see you again, Nanjiro-jisan."_

"_So, what brings you here?"_

"_Actually, I have some matters to discuss with you for my upcoming eighteenth birthday party."_

"_Ah, so you're turning eighteen already, are you? How time seems to fly! So, what did you need to discuss?"_

_Kei went up to Nanjiro and whispered something into his ear. All this whispering was starting to get on my nerves._

_When Kei pulled away, a curious thing happened. My fathers face became the oddest shade of purple._

"_You want what!" he shouted. "My baby girl is just fifteen years old, and you want to-"_

_He was cut off by Kei saying. "Think about it this way, Nanjiro-jisan. Better me than someone you don't know, right?"_

_My father seemed to calm down a tiny bit, thinking this over. _

"_I mean, you know me. You've known me for over a decade. You know I won't do anything to Ryoma-chan. And if she's with me, you'll be able to see her any time you want. I know better than to try and keep you away from her."_

_My father's face slowly began to revert back to its natural colour as he heard all this._

"_Imagine if she were to fall in love with a delinquent. She would probably be pregnant before you heard a breath about it. We wouldn't want that, now would we?"_

_This seemed to be the last push as my father's face drained of all colour after hearing this. Then, after fixing Kei with a steely expression for about five seconds, a bright smile broke across his face and he said, "Well then, Keigo my son, you've got a deal! I look forward to the day our two families will be one."_

_My face flushed at this. We had only just started going out and my father was already talking about marriage?_

"_Oyaji! Don't say things like that!" I shouted at him._

_Turning to look at me, he had on a genuinely confused expression._

"_What?" he said. "I was merely-"_

_Again, he was cut off as Keigo said quietly, "She doesn't know."_

_I look from one to the other. "Know what?" I asked._

_My father smiled mischievously and said, "It's nothing. You'll find out soon enough."_

_End Flashback_

I frowned a little, remembering how frustrated I had felt that day.

Swatting me lightly on the arm, Ten said, "Don't frown, sweetheart. You'll ruin the makeup. Anyways, you look prettier smiling."

I blushed a little, but complied.

And so, the hours passed as Ten and I talked and finally, after what seemed like forever, the tiny makeup artist said, "Done!"

My face broke into a wide smile. "Really?" I asked.

Nodding, she said, "Now come on. Let's get you into your dress and then you'll leave."

This surprised me. "You aren't coming to the party?"

She shook her head regretfully. "Atobe-kun invited me, but I have an important client today by the name of Tsuruga Ren."

"I see…" I said sadly.

Patting me lightly on the shoulder, she smiled, saying, "Don't look so down! Today's a special day for you! You have to tell me all about it later, okay?"

"For me?" I asked confusedly. "Why would it be special for me?"

She slapped a hand to her mouth, then let out a little giggle. "Oops," she said. "I shouldn't have said that."

I looked at her with narrowed eyes. "Ten, you're hiding something from me, aren't you?"

She nodded hesitantly.

"Tell me what it is!"

She shook her head, smiling mischievously. "No way! I promised Atobe that I would keep me mouth shut!"

I pouted, saying, "And I thought you were on my side."

She looked apologetic. "Sorry, honey, but I don't want to ruin the surprise!"

I sighed. "Whatever."

**Keigo**

It was about half an hour into the party and most of the guests had shown up. The only person missing now, was the belle of the ball.

Ten had called earlier, saying that they were running a little late, but that the wait was definitely going to be worth it. As I mingled with the crowd, talking to people here and there, I kept looking towards the large front doors.

"Atobe-san, might you be waiting for someone?" asked one plump lady. The wife of one of my father's business partners.

Turning to her, I smiled politely and said, "I apologize, my lady. I am actually waiting for a childhood friend of mine, Echizen Ryoma, and her brother."

"Oh!" The woman seemed surprised. "My oh my, I wasn't informed that the Echizen twins would be here! What a splendid coincidence. My daughter has had her sights set on young Ryoga for quite a time now."

I nodded vaguely. Then, hearing a loud murmur start up, I looked in the direction it began from and saw that Ryoma and Ryoga had arrived.

Ryoga had his hair combed back and was wearing a splendid white silk tuxedo with a rose in the pocket. Walking daintily beside him was Ryoma, and she looked absolutely breathtaking.

She was wearing a black silk dress that fell to the floor in an inky waterfall. It had spaghetti straps in place of sleeves and was pure black except for a design of white sakura petals cascading down the skirt, beginning from her right hip. Ten had given her extensions that matched the exact shade of her hair, and fell down her back in a cascade of darkly coloured curls. Long, graceful bangs framed her face and her lips were a bright cherry red, her cheeks a rosy pink. At her throat and ears sparkled gems of yellow topaz, effectively bringing out the colour of her eyes.

I almost forgot how to breathe. It was like falling in love all over again.

As she looked up, our eyes met and she smiled a shy smile. Feeling myself inexplicably drawn to her, I walked forward and extended a hand out to her in invitation. Quietly, Ryoga slipped away and I led Ryoma to the dance floor.

We danced for hours and talked about a lot of different things. Then, just before midnight, I took Ryoma by the hand and pulled her to a small stage set up for exclusively for this purpose.

After claiming everyone's attention, I announced, "Echizen Ryoma, today, I turned eighteen, and before my birthday is over, I have just one thing to ask of you…"

* * *

DemonicEmbrace: Ehehe don't you all just loooove cliffies? I myself am quite fond of them, in case you hadn't noticed. Anyways, what do y'all think Atobe is going to ask? Hm? As if it isn't obvious, lol. And don't you dare say it's too early! I mean, I know that they've just started going out, but it's actually quite normal in rich families….oops, I've said too much already. Hehe, well, you'll just have to wait 'til next chapter to find out more! And until then, au revoir, mes amis!

P.S. I just remembered something! I have an idea for a new fic, but I don't know if I should post it. Read the summary, please, and tell me if you all think I should go for it:

Soon after winning the nationals, Ryoma gets hurt and has to go to the hospital. It seems that his injuries are not that serious, and he's discharged the day after, or so everyone thinks. The first time everyone sees their favourite rookie after he's discharged, he tells them he's going to be moving to America, and only has 10 days before he leaves and he insists on spending them together with his sempai-tachi. But there's something he isn't telling them. What is it? Read to find out. Warning: Possible character death.


	13. Welcome to the Family

**Ryoma**

"Echizen Ryoma, today, I turned eighteen, and before my birthday is over, I have just one thing to ask of you."

I looked at him curiously, completely clueless as to the direction this was heading. Suddenly, he got down on one knee, and took my hand. My breathing hitched. He couldn't be…

"Will you marry me?"

I felt dizzy. I had never expected a proposal, we had really only been going out for about a month. Suddenly, I remembered all the whispering, and my father mentioning marriage. So this was what Kei meant when he said this birthday was important.

"B-but," I stuttered out. "I-I'm only 15. I'm not ready for marriage."

The crowd was pin-drop silent.

Keigo smiled, undeterred. "That's fine. We can wait until you're older, and you can break it off any time you want, but Ryoma, will you do this for me? Will you become my fiancée?"

Despite my earlier objections, I was thrilled beyond words. Until this moment, I had never really understood how very much Kei meant to me, and the idea of spending the rest of my life with him made me so happy I could explode.

Opening my mouth, I stuttered out, "I will."

Keigo smiled in triumph and slipped a beautiful engagement ring onto my ring finger. It was made of pure silver and had a big emerald in the middle. Getting up, he planted a passionate kiss on my lips and the crowd burst into (rich people) cheers. As he pulled away, I suddenly realized I was crying. Putting my hand up, I wiped away my tears and was relieved to see that my make-up hadn't run. Trust Ten to know that I would need water-proof makeup.

We had come to the end of the party, but for a full hour after the proposal, we were surrounded by people wanting to give us their congratulations.

Sometime around one, the last guest had left, and the only people left were my parents and Ryoga.

"Congratulations, imouto," said Ryoga, giving me a hug. Then, turning to Keigo, he gave him a hug too, saying, "Congratulations to you too, onii-san."

When Ryoga pulled away, my father and mother both came up to me, hugging me and giving their congratulations. Turning to Keigo, my mom put both hands on either side of his face and planted a kiss on his forehead, saying, "Welcome to the family."

I smiled. Seeing my family welcome him so warmly made me happy.

"So," said Ryoga. "Will you be coming home with us tonight? Or will you be spending the night with your new fiancé?"

I couldn't help but blush at this, and he smirked at me.

Suddenly, my father's head snapped around and he glared at Ryoga.

"I don't care if you two are engaged! You, Atobe Keigo, will not lay one finger on my little girl!"

I blushed even harder at my father's over protectiveness and Keigo put on an innocent expression.

"Oh, I would never even dream of it, Nanjiro-ji-san."

"Good," said my father, nodding once. "Come now, everyone. It's getting quite late and we should be getting home now."

I gave Keigo a quick peck on the lips and said goodbye, turning to follow my family.

Suddenly, Keigo pulled me back and kissed me once more, longer than before. As he pulled away, he said, "I love you."

Blushing, I said, "I love you too."

* * *

**Momo**

On Monday, I arrived at practise a little later than usual to find Eiji unusually depressed, and Inui was sulking in a corner.

Going up to Eiji, I asked, "Ne, sempai, what's wrong?"

Looking up at me, he pouted and said in a pitiful voice, "Waah! Momo-chan! I've just had my heart broken!"

"Nani?" I asked, confused. Then, my face paled and I said, "You don't mean you…"

He shook hi head. "No, but-"

At that moment, Ryoma came onto the scene and saw Eiji 'crying.'

Looking worried, she stretched out her left hand to him, asking, "Are you okay, Eiji-sempai?"

Seeing a bright glint, I looked closely at her hand and saw that she was wearing a ring. On her ring finger. I couldn't help but stare at it. Was that what I thought it was?

Catching me staring at her hand, Ryoma looked down, then blushed.

"Is that…?" I trailed off.

She nodded, smiling a bit shyly. "Kei-chan proposed to me at his birthday party."

I finally understood why Eiji and Inui-sempai both seemed to be in such bad moods.

"I see," I said absently. Then, smiling a bright, fake smile, I said, "Congratulations."

At this she flushed, and seemed so happy, I couldn't help but feel better.

"Arigatou," she said. "Anyways, I'm sorry, but I have to go, Ryoga's calling."

As she turned and left, I turned to the other two and smiled. "Ah, well, at least now that we know we have no chance, we can treat her like a proper kouhai, ne?"

Eiji looked at me with awed eyes. "Momo-chan seems so happy. Aren't you sad at all?"

"Of course I am," I said. "I just had my heart broken for the first time. But time will heal all wounds. For now, let's just focus on our tennis, ne?"

"Yosh!" shouted Eiji, seeming suddenly excited. "Ikuzo!"

I sweatdropped. Broken heart, or no broken heart, Eiji was still as excitable as ever.

* * *

DemonicEmbrace: Lols, who saw that coming? And aww, now I feel sad for Momo and the others. Ah, well, please review and tell me what you thought and I'll update as soon as I can!


	14. Trip to America

**Chris**

Jenny was looking at the phone in her hand without saying a word. She had been like this for the past minute.

"Jen! For goodness' sake, tell me what the text says!"

She looked up at me and suddenly smiled.

"Ryoma's coming to visit us!" she said, ecstatic.

"What?" I asked, thinking I had heard wrong.

She just handed me her phone, her grin stretching from ear to ear. Taking the phone from her, I read the text.

_Hey J&C,_

_Coming to America for my b-day! I'll call you later with the details. Can't wait to see you both!_

_-Ryoma_

I looked up from the text into Jenny's widely smiling face.

Smirking, I said, "The way you're acting, it's like you haven't seen her in years, it's only been about six months."

"That's a really long time to me!" she whined.

"Whatever," I said, flicking her forehead playfully.

* * *

**Ryoma**

I was going through my mental checklist, making sure I hadn't forgotten anything, when there was a knock on my door.

"Come in!" I shouted, not getting up from my place on the floor.

The door opened and Ryoga came in.

Looking around my normally neat room, he let out a whistle.

"What happened in here? It looks like there was a clothing tornado."

I looked around the room to see what he was talking about and was surprised to see how messy it was. There were clothes thrown all over my bed, on the furniture, and piled in heaps all over the floor.

"I have no idea how this happened," I said.

Ryoga just snorted and said, "Whatever. Anyways, why are you so nervous? You know you don't really have to pack that much. If you're missing anything, we can just buy it when we get there. If anything, I should be the one that's nervous. I'm the one that's going there for the first time."

"I know," I said. "But I'm just so excited! I can't wait to see Chris and Jenny again!"

"I've heard a lot about them. I'm looking forward to meeting them," he said and suddenly, I remembered something.

"Oh!" I said.

"What's up?" he asked, curious.

I looked at him sheepishly and said, "I, um, kinda forgot to tell them about you."

Ryoga pouted and said, "What? You forgot? Are you embarrassed of me?"

Laughing, I punched him lightly on the shoulder and said, "Drama queen."

He punched me back a little harder saying, "Shut up, I'm not nearly as dramatic as you. Now hurry up! We're leaving in an hour!"

"Hai, onii-sama," I said sarcastically.

After punching me one more time, he left.

* * *

**Jenny**

Stepping out of the limo, I pulled Chris's arm, trying to get him to walk faster. "Hurry up!" I said.

He just laughed at me. "Yeah, yeah, just slow down, you're going to hurt yourself."

Giving up on him, I let go of his arm and ran ahead.

After ringing the doorbell many thousands of times, a butler opened the door and smiled when he saw us. Ushering us in, he said, "Miss Ryoma shall be with you in a minute." After that, he turned and hurried off to whatever he had been doing before we came.

Chris and I decided to wait for Ryoma in the living room but, when we got there, we saw a surprising sight.

There, lying on her stomach, asleep on the couch was Ryoma.

It wasn't so much the fact that she was sleeping on the sofa that surprised me, more that the butler had said that she was upstairs and would be coming down soon…

Ignoring the mistake (for that's what it must have been) I headed over and sat on the edge of the couch, grabbing her by the shoulder and shaking her gently to wake her up.

"Ryoma, wake up! It's me, Jenny!" I said in a soft voice.

She began to stir, but something didn't seem right. Suddenly, she lifted up her head and I saw that it wasn't her after all.

"Kya!" I shouted, falling back in shock.

The boy just looked at me with hazy eyes, still half-asleep.

When his eyes finally focused, he smiled warmly at me and said in a voice similar to Ryoma's, "Ah, you must be one of Ryoma's friends."

Not able to say anything, I just nodded mutely.

Suddenly, he shouted, "Ryoma! Get down here!"

I stared at him with wide eyes. Who was he? He looked so much Ryoma…

"What do you want, Ryoga?" asked Ryoma, coming down the stairs.

When she saw us, she squealed loudly and came running over to me.

"Jenny!" she shouted, hugging me tightly.

"Hey Ryoma!" I said, hugging her back. "I've missed you so much!"

"Me too!" she said and we went back and forth like that for a few minutes, catching up, and when the greetings were over, I asked the question that had been bugging m for a while now.

"Ryoma, who's he?" I asked, pointing at the boy that looked so much like her.

"Ah, I forgot to tell you about him! This," she said, gesturing for the boy to get up, "is Ryoga! My older twin brother!"

I stared at the aforementioned twin brother in surprise and he offered me a lazy half smile, half smirk that I had seen on Ryoma's face many times.

"Since when do you have a twin brother?" I asked, turning to Ryoma.

She shrugged. "Since always, I guess. He's lived in Japan with my mom all his life, so I hadn't met him before this summer."

"Nice to meet you," drawled Ryoga, who seemed utterly bored. His attitude at that moment seemed very much like Ryoma's and if I didn't know her as well as I did, I might possibly have grown to dislike Ryoga. As it was, I felt as if I had met a long lost friend.

I smiled widely and said, "It's nice to meet you Ryoga!" I then proceeded in the throwing my arms around him in an impromptu hug.

He looked taken aback for a second, then his face relaxed into a more friendly expression and he said, "Really, are all girls like this?"

As I let go, he smiled again (this time a real smile) and greeted Chris.

Soon after all the introductions had been made, Atobe came sauntering into the room and I turned to look at him.

"Keigo?" I asked, surprised. "Oh my gosh, it's been so long! What are you doing here?"

He had hung out with us a lot when he still lived here but I hadn't seen him in quite a while.

"Hello Jennifer, Christopher, it's good to see you two too. I'm actually here to celebrate my fiancée's seventeenth birthday."

"Fiancée?" I asked.

Going over to Ryoma, he wrapped his arms around her waist and that's when I noticed the ring on her finger.

"You two are engaged?"

* * *

SkyGem: So, what did you think? Please review and I'll update as soon as possible!


	15. Beat You to a Pulp

SkyGem: Hey all! Well, the last chapter was a bit rushed, so I went back and edited the bit where Jenny and Chris meet Ryoga for the first time. It's your choice whether you read it, but I suggest you do. Anyways, thanks to those who reviewed on last chapter, and here's the next!

* * *

**Jenny**

"You two are engaged?"

Ryoma blushed a little and nodded.

"W-when?" I asked.

"On his 18th birthday," Ryoma said, still blushing.

I was quiet for a moment, digesting this, then said, "Congratulations! Oh my gosh, you have to let me help you plan the wedding! When is it?"

"We haven't decided on that yet," said Keigo when Ryoma didn't answer. "We haven't been going out that long, so we decided to wait a little longer, until we're sure we won't be breaking up any time in the foreseeable future."

I nodded thoughtfully. "That makes sense…but if you go ahead and pick a dress out without telling me about it Ryoma, I swear, I will strangle you to death!"

Ryoma, who seemed more than a little embarrassed about the topic, said, "Okay, okay whatever you say. Now can we please stop talking about this?"

I giggled at her embarrassment, but decided to let the topic drop.

For the rest of the morning, we all just kinda hung out around their mansion. Then, after lunch, we decided to go shopping.

While we were shopping for clothes, though, the boys got bored and the three of them walked off after we had all scheduled to meet in an hour at the nearest McDonalds.

* * *

About an hour later, when it was almost time to meet the boys, Ryoma and I were leaving a Stitches store when she suddenly stopped and her eyes became distant. She started shaking and I began to get worried.

Putting a hand on her back, I said, "Ryoma? What's wrong? Did something happen?"

Ryoma didn't say anything, just looked at me with a confused look on her face, seeming incredibly shaken.

"Ryoma?" I suddenly heard a vaguely familiar voice say.

Turning towards the voice, my eyes widened when I realized who it belonged to.

* * *

**Ryoma**

My eyes snapped to his face when I heard him say my name. He hadn't changed much in the year since I had last seen him. Every single straight, black hair was in place; his eyes were just as I remembered them, sea green; but he had grown a bit since then and was a full 3 inches taller than me.

When he saw me, a smile broke onto his face and he said, "It is you, Ryoma! Oh, it's so good to see you! I never got a chance to talk to you after what happened last time!"

I shook my head, backing slowly away. "There's nothing to talk about," I said in a voice that barely escaped shaking.

"Ryoma! Please, just-" he began but was cut off by Jenny.

"Shut up!" she snapped. "Can't you see she doesn't want to talk to you? Just get lost!"

He just looked at her, not seeming to recognise her. Shaking his head, he said, "You stay out of this. This is just between me and Ryoma."

"No, Tetsuya!" shouted Jenny. "It's not! This has to do with me too!"

I was grateful to Jenny for standing up for me. I still couldn't find my voice, that was how upset I was at suddenly bumping into my ex again.

Before he could respond, my cell phone rang and everyone jumped.

I picked it up with shaking hands. **"Moshi moshi?"** I said in Japanese.

"_**Ryoma!" **_said my fiancé from the other side. _**"Where are you two? We've been waiting for you for ever!"**_

"**Keigo!" **I said in relief.

Seeming to sense the distress in my voice, he immediately became alert. _**"What's wrong? Did something happen?"**_

"**C-can you please come pick us up? We bumped into someone unpleasant and he won't stop bothering us."**

"_**I'll be right there! Where are you?"**_ he replied immediately.

After I had told him where we were and we had both hung up, I felt a little better.

"Was that Keigo? What did he say?" asked Jenny who didn't understand Japanese.

I smiled shakily at her. "Yeah, it was him. They're going to come get us."

"Who's coming to get you?" asked Tetsuya, who was Japanese himself and had understood everything that I had said. "Who's Keigo?"

I refused to answer him, instead turning my head away so that I didn't have to look at him.

"Keigo is our childhood friend," said Jenny, answering his question. "And he and Ryoga and Chris are coming to get us! So there!" At the end, she stuck her tongue out childishly.

Tetsuya looked still more confused. "Ryoga? Chris? Who are they?"

"'They' would be us," came Keigo's voice and I turned to see the three of them approaching.

"Guys!" I said in relief and ran up to them.

Wrapping my arms around Keigo's waist, I buried my head in his chest.

* * *

**Tetsuya**

I watched in outrage as Ryoma ran up to one of the three boys that had approached and threw her arms around him. He was tall (taller than me) and had oddly coloured hair. His eyes were a steely grey and there was a beauty mark below his right eye.

His arms went protectively around Ryoma and he said, "What the hell have you been doing to my Ryoma?"

"YOUR Ryoma?" I said angrily. "She's **my **girlfriend!"

I watched as first surprise, then outrage flashed across his face and I smiled smugly.

"I'm afraid there's been a mistake," he said. "My name is Keigo Atobe and she is me fiancée!"

"What?" I spluttered. This time I was the one that was outraged. "Stop talking nonsense! I am Tetsuya Moriguchi and she is **my** girlfriend! So get your hands off her!"

Suddenly, one of the other boys that had come with Keigo started, then came forward and said, "**You**'re Tetsuya Moriguchi?"

I couldn't see his face because he was wearing a baseball cap, but the tone of his voice told me he was beyond upset.

"Yeah? And what of it?" I said defensively.

He then grabbed the rim of his hat and turned it backwards so that I could see his face, which looked exactly like Ryoma's.

Cracking his knuckles, he said, "I'm her older twin brother, Ryoga. And I'm about to beat you to a pulp."

* * *

SkyGem: Ta da! So, what did you guys think? Hehe, love how protective Ryoga is of his sister XD. Anyways, please do review and tell me what you thought, ne? And I'll try to update asap! Bye for now!


	16. Insecurities

**Tetsuya**

I looked at the guy standing in front of me for a second, then smirked. He didn't look all that strong, and I was confident of my skills. I had been practising karate since I was young.

"Wiat! Please don't do this, Ryoga!" shouted Ryoma, grabbing onto her brother's arm.

My smirk widened. "Your sister is quite smart, Ryoga-kun. You really shouldn't pick a fight with me. You might get hurt."

"Urusai!" Ryoma shouted at me. "This is for your own good, baka!"

"Oh?" I said, mildly surprised. "Thanks for the thought, sweetheart, but I can protect myself."

"Don't listen to what he says, Ryoga! He's really very weak. You don't want daddy to get mad, do you?"

My anger suddenly flared up and I grabbed her arm, but before I could say anything, Ryoma had turned around and landed a high kick on my shoulder.

I stumbled back a few paces and fell to the floor. My shoulder felt as if it had been crushed by a wrecking ball.

As I looked up at Ryoma in shock, she stared coldly at me.

"Don't. **Ever**. Touch. Me," she said menacingly and I felt a shiver crawl up my spine.

"Now can I hit him?" Ryoga asked his sister.

Sighing, Ryoma nodded. "Fine, whatever. Just don't send him to the hospital."

Ryoga smiled a goofy smile, planted a kiss on his sister's cheek, then threw off the hoodie he was wearing.

His arms, though slender in some respect, were leanly muscled and seemed to hold a great deal of power.

Suddenly, I felt **very** scared.

* * *

**Ryoma**

By the time the limo arrived to pick us up, Tetsuya was lying on the floor, every inch of him covered bruises that were already starting to turn purple.

As Jenny and I climbed in before the boys, I shook my head, "I told you not to overdue it, Ryo-nii."

Ryoga, after climbing in after me, just smirked and said, "No, you just said not to send him to the hospital, which I didn't."

I shook my head in exasperation. Normally, I didn't like violence, but seeing Ryoga beat that jerk up had kind of made me happy.

"You definitely went overboard!" said Chris from Jenny's other side.

"Exactly!" said Keigo and Ryoga looked over at him in astonishment. "I mean, by the time you were done, he was so beat up that if I did anything, he would have been sent to the hospital! When am **I** supposed to beat him up now?"

As soon as he finished saying this, Ryoga's face changed into an I-totally-saw-that-coming expression.

"Guys!" I shouted and the both turned to look at me.

"What?" they asked in unison.

"Why did you want to beat him up so badly anyway?"

"Because he hurt you," they replied matter-of-factly, as if they were stating the obvious.

Not noticing the slightly unsure expression on Keigo's face, I threw an exasperated glance at Jenny who returned with a smile.

"Oh calm down, Ryoma, it's just proof of how much they love you," she said with a smile.

I groaned. "Not you too, Jenny!"

Jenny just shrugged and we all continued our conversation like that until we had arrived back at the mansion.

* * *

That night, after Jenny and Chris had left the boys were both supposedly asleep, I was snuggled in bed, reading a book, when I heard a soft knock on my door.

Getting up, I crossed the room to open it and saw Keigo standing there.

"Keigo!" I said, surprised.

"Can I come in?" he asked and I was suddenly worried.

"Sure," I said, motioning for him to come in.

After we had both settled down, I looked at him expectantly.

Keigo just sighed and said, "Ryoma, how do you feel about me?"

I stared at him in conusion, wondering if he was joking. Why would he ask such a thing?

"I love you of course," I said without hesitation and he looked a little relieved.

Ten, a defeated expression came into his eyes and he said. "Is that true? Do you really love me?"

Putting my hand on his cheek, I forced him to look at me. "What are you talking about, Kei? What brought this on?" I asked.

He just looked down. "I don't know," he said. "It's just that, today, when I saw you defending that idiot Tetsuya, I thought that maybe you still had feelings for him. I don't want you to feel like I forced you into becoming my fiancée."

Suddenly, I understood what was going on and said, "Baka!"

Keigo flinched but I ignored it and instead wrapped my arms around him to dispel his insecurities.

"I have no feelings for that guys except for disgust and hatred. The one I love is you. I wouldn't have said yes to your proposal otherwise."

"Really?" he asked, looking at me with tear filled eyes.

Giggling a little, I gently wiped his tears away. "Of course, silly," I said, then planted a gentle kiss on his lips.

"You're the one I love most in this world."

* * *

SkyGem: Sorry for the short chapter, but I do hope you liked it. Ehehe, Kei-chan is cute when he's insecure! Anyways, please review and tell me what you thought, ne?


	17. Christmas Party

**Ryoma**

Ryoga and I fell to the ground on our respective sides of the net, breathing heavily. Falling flat on my back, onto the fake grass, I looked up through the skylight and at the blue sky beyond.

My brother and I were currently in one of our indoor courts, passing time.

Suddenly, a small giggle escaped my lips.

"What's so funny?" asked Ryoga, looking at me curiously.

Sitting up, I looked at him. Even in the five and a half months I had known him, he had changed a bit. He was more muscular (the lean muscles of an athlete), and was a little taller than me, we didn't look as alike as we used to.

I smiled slightly. "A lot has changed in the past few months," I said. "When I first moved in, we were pretty well matched in tennis, but at least we could finish a game. Now, we know each other too well. In two hours, neither of us could score a single point. For some reason, I find that kind of funny."

Ryoga just smiled. "I see…" he said, trailing off.

I just flopped back down, relaxing.

We stayed like that in silence for a while, until that silence was broken by Keigo rushing in.

Handing me the home phone, he said, "It's your father."

Nodding, I took the phone and said, "Moshi moshi?"

"_Hey, brat. How's it going?"_

"Fine," I said. "When are you guys coming over?"

Sounding apologetic, he said, _"Sorry, kid, but something came up. We can't arrive until the day of."_

"Nani?" I asked.

"_I'm really sorry," _he said, sounding as if he really meant it. _"We'll try to get there as soon as we can, okay? You guys are fine by yourselves, right?"_

"Hai," I said a little disappointedly.

"_There's a good girl. Oh! And don't forget to invite the Moriguchis, ne?"_

I stiffened upon hearing the name. "Nani?" I asked again. "Nande?"

"_Because I have something special planned for Tetsuya-kun,"_ I heard my father say in a mischievous voice.

Groaning, I said, "Please don't, oyaji. Keigo and Ryoga have already beat him up enough. Can't we just be done with them now?"

"_Oh, they've beat him up already? Great...but no. Invite him. If you don't, there will be consequences to face."_

"…Hai," I said after a slight hesitation.

"_Good girl. Anyways, I'll see you in a few days, ne? Tell your brother I love him."_

"Hai," I said. "By oyaji."

After I had hung up, I handed the phone back to Keigo and flopped back down onto the ground.

"What did he say?" asked Ryoga, who had come over to my side of the net.

"Something came up and they can't come until the day of," I told him, my eyes closed. Then, I remembered something and said, "Ne, put the Moriguchis on the guest list for me, will you?"

"Moriguchis?" asked Keigo, sounding insecure.

Opening my eyes, I laughed at his expression. "Don't worry, Kei-chan. It's not like I want him to be there or anything, oyaji told me to. I argued against it, but he wouldn't change his mind. Says he has something planned."

Immediately, his expression change and he looked more relaxed. "Ah," he said. "Anyways, let's go. It's time for dinner, and Chris and Jenny are here for the sleepover."

* * *

**Tetsuya**

It was noon on Christmas Eve and I was sleeping in when I was awoken by one of the maids.

"What do you want?" I asked in a grumpy voice.

"I apologize, young master, but your father needs to see you."

"What does he want so early in the morning?" I asked irritably.

She just shrugged so I threw my covers off and stomped downstairs.

"What the hell do you want, otou-san!" I said as soon as I saw him. "I was sleeping!"

He smiled widely. "Why would you want to be sleeping on a day such as this? You should be getting ready!"

"Getting ready?" I asked, thoroughly confused. "For what?"

Letting out a laugh, he said, "Don't tell me you've forgotten? We have been invited to the Echizen twins' birthday celebration!"

"Nani?" I asked, my eyes widening. "You didn't tell me about this!"

His eyebrows furrowing, he said, "Didn't I?"

"Iie!" I shouted.

"Well, now you know. So you better be ready to go by seven."

I was about to protest, when a thought suddenly came into mind.

If I was being invited…did that mean Ryoma was still in love with me? I smirked at the thought. Of course she was still in love with me. How could she not be? All that stuff about being engaged was just to get me jealous, but tonight, I would reclaim my rightful belongings. One way or another.

* * *

**Ryoma**

Downstairs, the party was in full swing and as my parents were busy entertaining the guests, I was still getting ready for the party. Even though I had requested to wear something casual, my parents had insisted I dress formally which was why I was wearing the clothes I was dressed the way I was.

Staring at the mirror, I could barely recognize myself. My mom had brought a beautiful, flowing aquamarine evening gown when she had come from Japan, saying it had been made just for me. My hair was perfectly curled and clipped back in a half ponytail while at my ears and throat sparkled deep blue sapphires.

Suddenly, I was interrupted from my scrutiny by a knock at the door.

Turning, I saw that it was my brother, dressed in a white tux with a mint green tie.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Hai," I said and walked up to him.

I rested my hand on his arm and he led us both downstairs to the party.

Just before we came into view of the guests below, I smirked sadistically. This was going to be fun.

* * *

SkyGem: Okay, I'm like reeeally sorry. The first time I update in days, and it's a filler. You must all hate me X(. But I promise, I'll get a proper chapter out tomorrow, okay? Just, please review and tell me what oyu thought of this chappi, ne?


	18. The Ruining of Reputations

SkyGem: Well, as promised, here it is ^_^. Ahaha, those of you who've read Hidden Himesama will probably recognize this…Anyways, on to the story.

* * *

**Tetsuya**

When Ryoma first came downstairs with her brother, I could barely recognize the two of them. Ryoma looked absolutely gorgeous in a floor length, purple silk dress, and even I had to admit that Ryoga was pretty good looking in his tux.

For a second, Ryoma's eyes met mine and she smiled, making my heart flutter.

There was no way she couldn't be in love with me.

The first thing she did, though, when she got to the bottom of the stairs was join hands with Atobe and the three of them went around greeting the guests.

"Oh? What's Atobe-san with Ryoma-chan?" asked my father.

Gritting my teeth, I said, "He's her fiancé."

This seemed to surprise him. "Ryoma-chan has a fiancé?"

I didn't answer him, just glaring straight ahead.

"Well, she is quite pretty; it's no surprise that such an important figure in the business world has fallen in love with her. Too bad you two broke up. I was looking forward to having her as a daughter-in-law."

Each sentence was like another blow, and I glared at my father, thoroughly hating him for a moment. Then, I realized what he had said.

"What do you mean that he's an important figure in the business world?"

"Oh? You don't know?" asked my father. "Atobe Keigo-san is the heir to Atobe Corp. It's an international multi-billion corporation." Then, laughing nervously, he said, "They're a dangerous combination, those two families. Together, they could bankrupt our entire company with the snap of a finger, so you better not get on their bad side, ne?"

I felt the blood drain from my face and my father looked at me with wide eyes.

"Don't tell me you've…?" he asked.

Fidgeting a little, I said in a quiet voice, "I may have cheated on her a little while we were going out…"

When he heard this, I could see many expressions cross his face. First was anger, he couldn't believe that I would do something so disgraceful; then was sympathy for Ryoma whom he believed must have gone through much pain; and finally, pure terror, because who knew what they might do to our family now.

Then, laughing nervously, he said, "Well, they must have forgiven you, right? I mean, if they've invited us to this party." Both of us knew he was just grasping at straws now.

"Is there something wrong, Moriguchi-san?" I heard a sweet voice ask and turned to see Ryoma approaching us with Atobe and her brother following her.

I jumped a little when I saw her, suddenly suspicious of the smile she was wearing. Did she have something planned?

"N-no, not at all, Echizen-sama," I heard my father, trying to keep his voice steady. "You look beautiful tonight. May I congratulate you and your brother on turning sixteen. And for your engagement, too. I apologize for not having sent a present. I assure you, it will arrive at your mansion soon enough."

"Oh, Moriguchi-san, you shouldn't have. The Christmas and birthday presents we've received tonight are more than enough."

"Oh, I insist," said my father, trying to sound as respectful as possible.

Before they could go on, Atobe approached, throwing a self-satisfied smirk at me.

"Please, Moriguchi-san, I apologize greatly for interrupting."

"Oh, not at all," said my father respectfully. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Atobe-sama."

"Likewise," said Atobe. Then, the smile disappeared from his face and he said, "Is what I would like to say, but I'm afraid it wouldn't be true. Your son's childish actions have quite upset me, you see."

"Have they, now?" asked my father, throwing me a furious look. "I apologize greatly. I shall punish him rightly the moment we arrive home."

"Oh, but I have a better idea," said Atobe, the grin returning to his face, albeit it was more sadistic than before.

"Oh? And what would that be?" asked my father, sweating buckets now.

"I hear you have another son?" interrupted Ryoga.

Turning to look at him, surprised, my father said, "Why yes. He is currently eight years old, Echizen Ryoga-sama."

"And your elder son is the heir?" asked Atobe. Hearing this, I began to get a terrible feeling in my stomach.

"Yes," said my father, seeming curious.

"Well now, if you'll excuse me for saying this, Moriguchi-san, but I dare say, in the future, I would surely prefer working with your younger son, if you know what I mean."

Suddenly, I realized what they were thinking. Surely, they had come up with the worst torture for me. They were going to strip me of my birth rights, and give them to my younger half-brother. Surely they knew how much I would rue this, otherwise why would they put me through such a humiliation? And the worst part was, father would probably agree without hesitation; anything to keep his company afloat.

"I believe I do," said my father, uttering the words I feared most. "Consider it done, Atobe-sama." I could clearly see the relief in his face, hear it in his voice, and I had never hated him more than at that moment.

"I'm sure he will have been raised with much better manners than his aniki, will he not?" asked Ryoma, the double-meaning clear in her voice.

"But of course," replied my father. "Now, I apologize greatly, Echizen-sama, but you see, my son and I really must be going."

"Oh? But why so soon? The party is just getting started," said Ryoma with mock concern in her voice.

"I apologize, but something terribly urgent has come up." Then, bowing low, he pulled me away after saying, "Now, if you'll please excuse us."

As I followed my father, I threw one last glance at Ryoma and saw her waving back at me, a self-satisfied smirk evident on her face.

_Good riddance_, I saw her mouth.

* * *

SkyGem: What ddi you think? Please review, ne? Oh, and I have a challenge for y'all! I'll be needing an OC soon (not necessarily in this fic) and I thought a fun way to do it would be to have you guys create one. But it would be too easy to just suggest one, so here's what I want you to do. I want you all to guess the reasoning behind at least six of my fic titles (as in, why do you think I chose to name them what I did). The first one to get all six right will have their OC chosen. I'll PM the winner of the challenge when it's decided and post their pen name here and in the fic I'll be using the Oc in. Hehe, so hurry up and review!


	19. Pregnant

**Ryoma**

As soon as the last guest had left, I slumped down into a chair, thoroughly tired of smiling and making small-talk with people I didn't know or particularly care about.

"Haha, you look tired," I heard my brother say from behind me.

"I am," I said, closing my eyes. "Seriously, why does our birthday have to be such a big event? I would have preferred to spend it with our sempai-tachi back at home.

"Look at the bright side," said my father, coming up to us. "At least you get a lot more presents this way."

"I don't care about presents!" I said. "Anyways, we have more than enough money for me to buy anything I need without people having to give them to me as gifts."

"Haha, and you say I'm spoiled," said interrupted Keigo.

"I'm not spoiled!" I exclaimed and they all started laughing. Pouting, I got up, saying, "I'm going to sleep now!"

"I'll come with you," said Keigo, trying to follow after me. He was stopped by my father.

"You're not going anywhere," he said, his eyebrow twitching.

"Why not?" asked Keigo. "She **is** my fiancée!"

"And she's my **16** year old daughter, and I said NO!"

Pouting grumpily, Keigo finally said, "Fine."

Laughing, I gave him a peck on the cheek, saying, "Good night, Kei. See you tomorrow, ne?"

* * *

And so, three years peacefully flew by…

* * *

I swayed a little, not believing what the doctor had said.

"Nani?" I asked.

She grinned widely, repeating what he had said.

"Congratulations, Echizen-sama. You're pregnant!"

I couldn't take in what she had just said. How had I gotten pregnant?

"How far along?" I asked, still dazed.

"About six weeks," she said. "If you look closely, you can tell the baby bump is barely starting to show. Soon enough, you'll start to have strange cravings and morning sickness. You'll need to start eating healthier for your baby and it's good to do light exercise during your pregnancy, but tennis is out of the question. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to call me on my private cell phone, ne?"

I couldn't help but smile at this. "Thanks, Mayu-nee," I said.

Kanoe Mayuko, she was about sixteen years older than me and had been our family's doctor for as long as I could remember and she was like an older sister to me.

Giving me a comforting hug, she then got up and opened the door for Keigo to come in.

He rushed to me, looking worried. "Are you okay, Ryoma? What happened? Did you find out the reason you've been so sick lately?"

Mayu-nee just threw me a knowing smile before turning to leave and said, "You're lucky you've got someone like him. I'm sure he'll be ecstatic. Don't look so worried."

She left before I could reply, but I knew she was right. I could trust Keigo.

"Ecstatic?" asked Keigo curiously. "About what?" He stared at me for a moment, then, something in his eyes changed and he seemed to realise what was going on. "Don't tell me, t-that was morning sickness?"

Surprised that he had caught on quickly, I slowly nodded my head, still not quite believing it myself.

His face was blank for a second, then, with a shout of excitement, he picked me up, twirling me across the room we were in, which was the infirmary of my family's Japan mansion.

"I can't believe it!" he said, his face practically glowing. "I'm going to be a father!"

Then, he stopped suddenly, his face showing terror.

"Kei-chan?" I asked, confused.

The blood drained from his face, and he said, "Your father is going to kill me."

Laughing, I hugged him closer and kissed the top of his head.

"Don't worry. I'll protect you."

"Thanks," he said, smiling sweetly. Putting me down, he said, "So, what about the wedding?"

I had completely forgotten about that. We had originally planned for it to be the summer after this one (it was April right now).

"I guess we'll have to move it up a year. Two months should be okay, right?" I asked worriedly.

"Two months for what?" asked a new voice and I turned to see that both my parents had come to see what was wrong.

"For the wedding," said Keigo. "We've decided to move it up to this year."

"What?" asked my father, seeming to panic. "That's too soon! I don't want to lose my baby!"

My mother, meanwhile, stayed quite, looking at me with a curious look.

"Why would you move it up? And on such short notice, too!" said my father, still seeming to be in shock.

Finally, my mother spoke up. "Is it because you're pregnant?"

Hearing this, my father's eye widened, and he looked as if he were about to faint.

"Is this true?" he asked and I nodded.

This time, he really did faint.

"But how did you know?" I asked my mother.

She just smiled knowingly. "Don't underestimate me, sweetie. I've given birth to twins, I can easily recognise a pregnancy when I see it. Also, there aren't many other reasons for wanting to move a wedding up on such short notice."

"That's true," I said.

"So, how far along are you?"

* * *

SkyGem: Short chapter, I know, and I'm sorry, but no worries, ne? Starting today, I'll start updating this story everyday. Also, I'm sorry, I know I can be pretty out of the blue when it comes to new arcs in my fanfics, but I guess that's just part of my personality making it into my writing. And since I don't plan my chapters out ahead of time, I myself usually don't even know what's going to happen next until I write it. Sometimes, the ending will come out of nowhere, but sometimes, I'll know when it's coming, like with this and Hidden Himesama…Anyways, please do leave a review, ne? OH, and to all who participated in the challenge, thank you so very much, and I said I would announce the winner here, ne? Well, the winner is…Sakura Ichigo Morihiko! Congrats girl! I look forward to using your OC. And thanks so much to everyone else who entered. I'll be talking to y'all later, ne? Anyways, until next time ^_^.


	20. Wedded Bliss

**Ryoma**

After waking my father up with a bucket of water to the face, and convincing him not to commit unspeakable acts towards my fiancé, my mother and I set about getting ready for the wedding, along with my older cousin, Namikawa Heiyomi-chan, who would have killed me if I hadn't called her the moment I found out. The two of us had been extremely close while I lived in America, but Keigo didn't like her much. For some reason, she absolutely refused to acknowledge him, and that bugged the living daylights out of him.

We had to send out all the invitations, choose a venue, a wedding gown, and all the usual stuff, only it was a lot harder because of the morning sickness, cravings, and mood swings.

Finally, though, every thing was perfect, and before I knew it, two months had already passed, it was half an hour before the ceremony, and I was waiting while my mother fixed my hair with the help of my maid of honour.

When they were done, I looked at myself in the mirror, worried. "Are you sure I look okay?" I asked. "I don't look fat?"

"You look beautiful," said my mother. "And don't worry, sweetheart. Remember, we chose this wedding dress specially because it's absolutely beautiful, and it hides your baby bump."

I smiled, feeling slightly reassured. I was about to thank them, when I felt a sudden bout of nausea hit.

Immediately noticing, Hei-chan hurriedly grabbed a bucket and handed it to me just in time.

After a few minutes of violent retching, I slumped back in my chair, thoroughly tired out.

Immediately, my mother and cousin started rushing around, getting me mint flavoured gum to get the taste of bile out of my mouth, and also helping me fix my make-up and my hair, which had gotten slightly messed up.

Not ten minutes later, everything was perfect again.

Smiling weakly, I said, "Thank you so much, guys. I don't know what I would do without you."

"No problem at all, sweetheart," said my mother, smiling sweetly.

"Yeah, Ryoma-chan. We want this day to be extra special for you."

"Thanks to you guys, it will be."

The three of us chatted like that for a while, and before I knew it, it was almost time for me to walk down the aisle.

After having said goodbye, my mother went to take her spot in the audience outside.

Not long after she had left, one of my five bridesmaids poked her head into the room, smiling brightly at me and saying, "It's time now, Ryoma-chan."

Taking a deep breath, I tried to calm myself down, then felt my cousin's hand on my shoulder. Looking over, I saw she had a bright smile on her face.

"Don't worry Ryo-chan. I may not approve of your choice in men" –here she rolled her eyes- "but I want this to be a happy day for you. Don't worry, ne? Everything will be fine."

Bending down a little to hug her, I felt her soft, bright green hair rub against my cheek, and it reminded me of when I was smaller, effectively calming me down.

"Hai, Heiyomi-chan! Arigatou."

"Nandemonai," she said, waving it off. "Let's go now, ne? It would be disaster if you were late to your own wedding."

* * *

**Keigo**

I was starting to get impatient as I hadn't seen Ryoma all day (who came up with this stupid idea that the groom shouldn't be allowed to see his bride before the wedding anyway?), when finally, the music started playing.

As Nanjiro went to take his place to wait for his daughter to come out, I remembered what had happened two months ago and shivered. Everything was alright now, of course, but I had a feeling he still harboured a resentment towards me.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when there were gasps all around the room as first the bridesmaids, then the bride herself walked out.

Looking past Heiyomi, who threw me a disapproving look, I searched for Ryoma, and when our eyes finally met, I felt a sense of relief.

She smiled shyly at me, but as she started walking forward, she stumbled a little and I had to fight not to rush up to her and help her.

As it was, her father kept her steady and they continued their march forward.

When the bridesmaids had taken their places, and my beautiful bride was finally standing before me, a big, goofy smile broke onto my face.

I wanted to close the short distance between us, to kiss her and hug her tightly, but I knew I couldn't. This event was too important to Ryoma and I had to perform it properly.

I waited impatiently as the pastor said the traditional lines then finally, finally it was almost done.

"Do you, Atobe Keigo, take Echizen Ryoma to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do," I said in a loud, clear voice.

"And do you, Echizen Ryoma, take Atobe Keigo to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"I do," she said in her sweet voice and I felt breathless with happiness.

"Then with the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."

Even before he had finished speaking, I had leaned forward as Ryoma did the same.

Then, amidst the cheers, we shared the kiss that would bind us together forever, and I was more than okay with that.

* * *

SkyGem: Aww, another short chapter, but I was sooo damn busy today, and it's pretty late here, so I'm really sorry, but I'll have to end it there. I'll see you guys tomorrow, ne? Oh, and please don't forget to leave a review. ^_^

P.S. Almost forgot something. Disclaimer: I don't own Namikawa Heiyomi-chan. She belongs to the author Sakura Ichigo Morihiko.


	21. Heiyomi

**Ryoma**

About half an hour into the reception, after I was finally able to get away from everyone trying to congratulate me on the wedding and/or the baby, I made my way to a chair and sat down.

I hadn't been sitting long before I was interrupted once again.

"Ochibi-chan!" I heard a familiar voice call and turned around in surprise.

I only saw a flash of red before I was almost hugged to death.

"Eiji-sempai!" I exclaimed in surprise.

When he pulled away, I saw he was wearing a black tux with a wine red tie that went well with his hair. Behind him, I could see the others approaching as well.

"You guys made it?" I asked.

Grinning from here, Eiji replied. "You didn't think we'd miss ochibi-chan's wedding, now did you?"

I couldn't help but smile in response. I hadn't expected them to be able to come, because after graduating from high school, they had all (with the exception of Taka who had decided on cooking school) enrolled in universities outside the country.

"Congrats, ne?" said Momo, coming up and giving me a hug, and the others soon followed.

I felt like I would cry, I was so happy. I hadn't had a chance to see the others for quite a while, and having them here meant the world to me.

"Ah, sempai-tachi! You guys made it!" I heard my brother's voice and turned to see him approach. "Long time no see."

As they greeted Ryoga, I decided to try and make my escape.

I had missed them to death, but I knew that if I stayed too long, they would start asking embarrassing questions.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Where do you think you're going, Ryoma-chan?" asked Momo, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"Um, I've got to use the washroom. Not feeling very good," I said, try to make an excuse. Almost as soon as the words were out of my mouth, though, Momo smirked sadistically and I knew I had made a mistake.

"Is it because of the pregnancy?" he asked teasingly.

"You really should have told us sooner," Fuji said, joining in.

"Yeah, think about how hurt we were when we found out we were the last ones to know," said Eiji, pouting.

"Hai, gomenasai, sempai-tachi. Will you ever forgive me?" I asked sarcastically.

"We'll think about it," said Fuji, smiling widely. "But only on one condition."

I raised an eyebrow in question.

"You have to bring him/her to visit often!" shouted Eiji and Momo at the same time.

I sweatdropped as I watched them both turn to each other and start arguing on the gender of my as yet unborn baby.

Taking this chance, I slowly slipped into the crowd. I had wanted to spend a little more time with them, but I wasn't worried. I knew that they would be staying in Japan for a while, so I could catch up with them later, in a less **public** place.

Slowly making my way through the crowd, I arrived at the female restrooms. I hadn't been joking earlier when I had said I needed to use the restrooms. My head felt as if a bomb had exploded in it, and I needed to get away from the music and dancing for a while.

Even though it wasn't the greatest feeling in the world, I wouldn't have traded it away for anything, because it was just proof of the life growing inside of me.

* * *

**Heiyomi**  
_A month and a half later_

"Ah, Ryoma-chan! You're awake?" I asked, getting up to go to my cousin who had just entered the room.

"Ohayou, Heiyomi-chan," she said tiredly as I helped her to sit down in a chair.

"Are you okay?" I asked. "Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she said weakly. "What's for breakfast?" she asked.

"Scrambled eggs."

A pout appeared on her face. "I don't want scrambled eggs."

I was about to reply when tears came to her eyes.

"Ryoma-chan?" I asked in alarm.

"I-I want…"she trailed off.

"Hai?" I asked, eager to appease her.

"I want sashimi!"

Taken aback, I blurted out, "Nani?"

"Sashimi!" she said, sounding spoiled. "I want sashimi!"

"Ryoma-chan," I said gently. "The chef isn't here right now, and you know I can't cook to save my life."

Furrowing her brows, looking like a child, she said, "Then order it! Ship it in from halfway across the world! I don't care! I just want my sashimi!"

Sighing, I said, "Hai, hai, I'll call Kawamura-san."

At this, she seemed happy, closing her eyes and humming happily to herself.

Five months into her pregnancy, and Ryoma was extremely mood-swingy and had the strangest cravings, but somehow, we had all learned to put up with it. This was definitely harder for Ryoma-chan then it was for us, so I figured she deserved to be pampered for a while.

Thinking back to when I had first found out about her pregnancy, I couldn't help but smile.

_Flashback_

"_Heiyomi!" I heard my mother call from the kitchen._

"_Hai?" I called back, not looking up from the magazine I was reading._

"_There's a call for you!"_

"_Tell them I'll call them later!"_

"_It's Ryoma-chan!"_

"_I said…" I trailed off in the middle of my sentence, eyes widening. Leaping up, I dashed from out of my bedroom, skipped down the stairs, and was in the kitchen in seconds._

_Grabbing the phone from her, I held it to my ear._

"_Ryoma-chan?" I asked breathlessly._

"_Hei-chan! Long time no talk! How are you doing?"_

"_Good," I said, taking the handset up to my room. We talked aimlessly for a while about school, friends, hobbies, and the like. Before Ryoma had moved to Japan more than three years ago, we had been incredibly close, and even to this day, we still chatted a lot through email and facebook._

"_So," I asked after we had been talking for quite a while. "What's up, Ryoma-chan? It's not like you to call so out of the blue like this. Is there anything wrong?"_

"_Well, there's nothing __**wrong**__ exactly," she started off, sounding a bit nervous._

"_Then?" I asked curiously._

"_Well…um...I'm…" she said quietly._

"_What was that?" I asked curiously. "Ryoma-chan, you have to speak louder. I can't hear you."_

_She was quiet for a moment, then, after seemingly gaining her courage, she repeated, "I'm pregnant."_

_I pulled the phone away from my ear and stared at it, as if to accuse it of putting words into her mouth._

_After getting over my shock, I brought the handset back up to my ear and said quietly, "Pregnant?"_

"_Hai," said my cousin from the other side._

_At that moment, my scream could be heard throughout the whole neighbourhood._

"_Heiyomi?" asked my mother worriedly, rushing into my room. "What's wrong?"_

"_Mama!" I ran up to her happily. "You'll never guess what! Ryoma-chan is __**pregnant**__!"_

_I watched as her eye widened comically. "Is that true?" she asked Ryoma, grabbing the phone from me._

_End Flashback_

I shook my head, laughing slightly. After that, my mom and I had booked the first flight back to Japan and had lived with my cousins for the next two months, helping arrange the wedding.

I had been less than pleased when I had found out who the father was, though. People often asked me why I disliked Keigo. It wasn't exactly that I disliked him, per se, more that I didn't quite know how to deal with him. I didn't know him that well in the first place, and we came from two completely different worlds. He was a pampered prince who'd had everything he'd ever wanted since the moment of his worth, I was just a normal Japanese-American girl who went to high school and had to actually work to get to where I was. Not to mention the fact that the aura of self-importance he always swathed himself in made me not want to get to know him more than I already did.

I didn't know how Ryoma could love him so much, but they way they acted towards each other, the love I saw in their eyes when near the one they loved, was enough to convince me that she had found the right man for herself, the one that saw her and only her, and would give up everything to make her happy.

…Not that I approved of him at all.

* * *

SkyGem: I'm so so so sorry! Please don't kill me! I have exams coming up, so I don't have all that much time to write. I'm sorry for not updating for so long. I promise, as soon as exams are over, I'll start updating more regularly, so please forgive me!

Anyways, please do leave a review and tell me what you thought of this chapter, ne?


	22. Mother In Law

**Ryoma**  
_6 months pregnant_

"Ryoma!" I heard a mature female voice say and looked up from my conversation with Heiyomi to see a familiar, well-beloved face.

"Mother!" I said in English, going up to hug her. It wasn't my real mother, of course, but my mother-in-law, Atobe Yukari. She was tall and slender, and it was from her that Keigo had inherited his looks. She had long, pale silvery hair and stormy gray eyes that were always laughing. "It's been so long! I haven't seen you since the wedding!"

"I know, and I'm so sorry, sweetheart," she said, really looking apologetic. **"**You have no idea how hard I've been trying to get away from my work, but they just wouldn't let me take any time off. 'You're the president,' they say. 'We can't work without you!'"she said, affectionately mocking her workers, and I couldn't help but laugh. She smiled and laughed along, then said, "But I've finally made some time to see my beautiful new daughter! And I must say, even in your pregnancy, you're absolutely glowing! As beautiful as ever!"

"Oh, please, there's no need to exaggerate,mother. I know I must look terrible," I said, waving away her compliments. Then, gesturing towards the sofa I had been sitting on, I said, "But anyways, why don't you sit down and I'll have Hatoba-san bring us some tea."

Heiyomi, who had been quiet until now, took this chance to greet her. "Hey, Yukari-san!" she said in a chipper voice. "Long time no see!" Even though she disliked the son, Heiyomi and Yukari were actually incredibly close. Instead of a mother-in-law, Yukari-san was more like a sister or a best friend.

"Why, Heiyomi-chan! It's been much too long! I had a feeling I'd be seeing you soon," said Yukari, going up to hug her. "How are you doing?"

"Very well, actually. I'm having Ryoma-chan help me plan a baby shower for her."

"Heiyomi-chan! I thought I told you that I didn't want one!" I said, turning on her.

"Aw, come on, Ryoma-chan! Jenny has really been looking forward to it, you know? She hasn't been able to come see you yet because of university, so she was really looking forward to the baby shower, so that she could make it up to you!"

I hesitated a little. I often resented the fact that Heiyomi knew all my weak points. "Jenny doesn't need to make anything up to me!"

"But honey," said Yukari, putting a hand on my shoulder, joining in on the attack. "If you cancel the baby shower, you'll make her feel unappreciated. Do you want to ruin your friendship with her? Anyways, it's a good excuse to see her. You guys can catch up on all the stuff you've missed since the last time you saw each other."

After a slight hesitation, I sighed. "Fine," I said grudgingly. "I'll let you throw me a baby shower."

"Yatta!" they both exclaimed, high-fiving each other childishly.

"But!" I said, interrupting their celebration. "I want it to be a small event. Only a few of my friends from junior high and high school, and the budget is 500 dollars! No more! Got it?"

This didn't seem to put a damper on their spirits as they both said in unison, "Hai!"

* * *

**Izumi (OC)**

"Atobe-sama!" I called, hurrying up to my boss, who was on his way out of the building.

"What is it, Izumi-san?" he asked, turning towards me, and I could see that he was trying not to snap.

"I apologize, Atobe-sama, I know it's time for you to go home, but you see, something urgent has come up. Mizorogi-san from Meteorite co. requests a meeting with you."

Looking more than a little frustrated now, he said, "Then have Yuushi arrange it! Ore-sama has to go home **now!**"

And with that, he stalked off, practically bristling.

I stared after him, feeling my anger start to rise. Even though he was the president of the company, I was still 8 years his senior and he should at least know how to show some semblance of respect to his elders.

As I stood there, fuming, I suddenly felt a hand on my shoulder and looked around to see the aforementioned Yuushi, vice-president of the company, looking at me sympathetically.

"You haven't been working here all that long, so you don't know yet, but when it's time for Atobe to leave, then you had better stay out of his way."

"But why was he so upset?" I asked, my anger still on the rise.

Yuushi just smirked and said, "It's just that his wife is six months pregnant with their first child, and he's very worried for her. I heard that it took Ryoma-chan, his wife, almost an hour to convince him to continue coming to work instead of just taking a break until she gave birth."

I looked at him with wide eyes as I felt my anger fizzle out. Glancing back to where my new boss had disappeared just moments ago, his frustration now made sense to me, and I felt sympathy towards him. I, being almost a decade older than him, already had two daughters, and I knew what it was like to be expecting.

"I see…" I said. Looking up, I saw that Yuushi was smiling.

"Buchou isn't the kind of guy that would snap at someone for no reason whatsoever. He may be arrogant and conceited, but he's not unreasonable, you know. Everyone here knows how much he cares for his wife, so we try to do our best so that he can go home on time. Next time, just come to me, okay?"

I nodded. Then, curious, I asked, "I've heard you and some of the others call him buchou at times. Why is that?"

He just smiled mysteriously, then said, "He was the buchou of our high school tennis team, and he even led us to the nationals in our last year. A lot of the workers here were on the team, and still respect him. I guess you could say it's an old habit that just refuses to die?"

I looked at him with wide eyes. "Your team must have been very strong. Did you win the nationals?"

At this, his face fell, and I knew I had asked the wrong question.

"Actually, it was Seigaku, our rival school, that won."

"I see…" I said.

Then, he smiled a bit. "Ryoma-chan and her twin brother Ryoga were actually on the Seigaku team, you know? They played doubles, and were the main reason our team, Hyotei, couldn't beat Seigaku. They were strong enough to be called the Twin Samurai and were said to have surpassed even their father, Samurai Nanjiro."

My eyes widened as I looked at him in awe. Even though I didn't follow tennis at all, I remembered being a huge fan of Echizen Nanjiro when I was still young. I had been heartbroken when he had announced his retirement.

It was such an odd coincidence that the person I was now working for was actually married to one of the reasons for the Samurai's retirement. And now that I thought about it, I did seem to remember hearing something about the famous Echizen twins who were expected to one day stand at the top of the tennis world.

And in another three months, the third generation would be born.

* * *

SkyGem: Haha, I realize the last bit probably wasn't all that interesting to y'all, but this fanfic was originally supposed to be about how the twins conquered the tennis world, so I thought it would be only fair to include that short (or should I say long) scene at the end. Don't worry, the next chapter will include the baby shower, and Sakura-chan, no worries, it will also include a lot of ignoring on Heiyomi-chan's part. So anyways, please, do leave a review and tell me what you thought, and I'll see if I can update tomorrow (it's not a promise, but I'll try my best).

P.S. Let's have a vote! What gender do you guys want the baby to be? Male or female? Should Ryoma only give birth to one baby, or twins? And include some name suggestions, ne?


	23. The Baby Shower

**Heiyomi**

"Ryoma-chan!" I called, poking my head into her bedroom.

Both she and her husband were fast asleep, and I almost didn't want to wake her up, but everything was ready for the party and the guests had already begun to arrive.

Going up to her, I shook her gently by the shoulder until her eyes fluttered open.

"Heiyomi-chan?" she asked, still half-asleep.

Smiling, I said, "Hurry! Get up, get up! It's time for the baby shower!"

Groaning, she pushed herself up and, as the blanket fell away, even I was surprised.

Even though I saw her everyday, the size of her baby bump surprised me. Deciding not to say anything, I helped her out of bed.

Suddenly, a groan interrupted us and we both turned to Keigo.

Opening his eyes, he looked up at us.

"Where do you think you're taking my wife?" he asked.

Not bothering to answer his question, I fixed him with an icy glare, saying, "If you show up downstairs at all today, I swear, I will hurt you so bad, you'll wish you'd never been born. So stay up here like a good little boy, and don't crash the party."

Turning, I pulled Ryoma out of the room and, after repeating relatively the same thing (only in a much nicer way) to uncle Nanjiro and Ryoga, the two of us headed downstairs.

"But Heiyomi-chan!" protested Ryoma. "At least let me change!"

"It's fine, it's fine!" I reassured her. "Remember, only your closest friends are here today! They've all seen you in your pyjamas at one time or another."

Before our conversation could go on, we arrived at the living room and all heads turned our way.

"Ryoma-chan!" called many voices at once.

In all, Yukari-san and I had invited only six people, two of Ryoma's female friends from junior high, Sakuno and Tomoka, Jenny, and three of our female cousins; Miyako, Aya, and Seira. Aunt Rinko was also there, of course.

Looking over at Ryoma, I saw a wide smile on her face and couldn't help but smile.

"It's been too long," said Sakuno, coming up to hug her. "We're so sorry we can't come visit you more often, Ryoma-chan."

"That's right, you have no idea how tiring university life is," said Tomoka, following after.

After the other four had said hello too, I interrupted. "Time for games!" I said happily and Ryoma's face paled.

"Games?" she asked.

"No worries, no worries! I'm sure you'll have fun!" I said, signalling to some of the servants.

"First is, guess the baby food!"

* * *

**Ryoma**

About an hour after I had been woken up by Heiyomi, we were finishing up a particularly hard game (for the guests), and I was surprised to find that I had actually had a lot of fun.

The game we were playing was called 'Then and Now.'

Basically, Heiyomi-chan had collected baby pictures of everyone there and the guests had to guess who was who.

Now normally, this wouldn't have been so hard, except that Heiyomi-chan, sadist that she was, had decided to include a picture of Ryoga, to make it harder. Now, nobody (other than me, Heiyomi, and my mom) could tell the difference between the two of us.

"Couldn't your parents have dressed you guys differently, at least?" asked Tomoka, and my mom laughed a little, but decided no to answer. "There's no way in hell anyone could tell the difference!"

Before I could reply, a hand reached over my shoulder and pointed to the picture, saying with the utmost confidence, "The one on the left is Ryoma and the right is Ryoga."

Everyone turned to look at the newcomer and my eyes widened when I saw Keigo standing above me, smirking in a self-satisfied way.

"Wah, how could you tell?" asked Miyako.

"He's wrong!" interrupted Heiyomi and I looked over at her in confusion. "It's the other way around! Ryoma's on the right and Ryoga's on the left!"

"No, I'm pretty sure he was right," said Ryoga, appearing out of nowhere, studying the picture.

"Yup, he was most definitely right. I would never get the two of them mixed up," added in my father, appearing in the same way Ryoga had.

Fuming, Heiyomi shouted, "What the hell are you three doing down here anyway! I thought I told you to stay upstairs!"

"Aww, but Heiyomi-chaan, it's boring up there!" whined my father, pouting.

"I don't care! This baby shower is only for the females! Get out!"

"Aww, why don't you just let them stay, Heiyomi-chan?" asked Aya. "It could be fun with them here."

"Yeah, there's no harm in letting them stay," said Jenny, who had long ago learned to speak Japanese.

Gritting her teeth in frustration, she said, "Fine. They can stay."

Smirking, Keigo, who was still standing, wrapped his arms around my shoulders, and stuck his tongue out childishly at Heiyomi.

Trying to dispel the tension that had suddenly gathered, I said, "So, what's the next game?"

Immediately brightening up, she said, "Guess Ryoma-chan's belly size!"

Everyone's eyes went directly to my tummy and Keigo's arms tightened protectively around me.

I could feel him glare at everyone over my shoulder, as if to dare them to even try it.

"L-let's skip that one," said Seira nervously and everyone hastily agreed.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Tomoka spoke up.

"But Ryoma-chan's belly is pretty big! Are you expecting twins?"

This observation surprised me because I honestly hadn't thought of the possibility before. Maybe it was because I myself was a twin, and it seemed a little weird to me that a twin might give birth to twins.

My father's eyes widened and he chuckled. "Looks like it's going to be Ryoma."

Everyone turned to stare at him, and I said, "Nani?"

He just shrugged his shoulders and said, "Well, Rinko told me once that in every generation her family, at least one pair of twins is born."

"Really?" asked Ryoga, looking awed.

My mother nodded sadly. "You two probably won't remember it, but my own twin sister died when you two were almost one year old."

"Oh!" interrupted Heiyomi. "I remember that! Um, it was Sayuki-baa-san, right?"

As everyone started whispering, I suddenly said out loud, in a nervous voice, "So does that mean I'm going to give birth to twins?"

Everything was suddenly quiet. Then, my dad said, "Why don't we find out?"

Before I knew it, I and everyone else present at the party had been split into two groups and rushed into limos headed on their way to the closest hospital.

* * *

**Keigo**

I stared at the screen in disbelief. Was this some kind of joke?

We had arrived at the hospital just moments ago and had gotten an appointment for an ultrasound pretty quickly due to the kindness of the doctors and nurses (the influence of the Echizen and Atobe families).

Now, everyone else in the room was staring at the screen with their mouths wide open in shock.

Upon hearing about the possibility of twins, I had tried to prepare myself, I had been happy even, but even I wasn't ready for this.

"Kei-chan?" I heard Ryoma said from beside me.

"Hai?" I replied.

"I'm not dreaming, am I?"

"Not unless we're having the same dream," I replied.

"Congratulations, Echizen-san," said the doctor, snapping us all out of our trances. "You're expecting triplets."

* * *

SkyGem: Haha, I doubt anyone saw that coming…What do you guys think? Too extreme? It's 'cause so many people wanted twins, but then others thought that it would be weird for a twin to have twins…..not that this is any less weird XD. But I think it's a fun idea, and you don't see triplets much in fanfics (especially PoT fanfics). Anyways, please leave a review and tell me what you thought, ne? Oh, and send in tons and tons of names! I still haven't settled on the genders yet either. ^_^


	24. Delivery Success

**Ryoma**

_9 months pregnant_

Ever since we had found out that I would be having triplets, my family had become extremely overprotective. At every hour of the day, there was always someone with me, whether it was my mom, dad, Ryoga, Heiyomi, or Ryoga, I couldn't find even a second alone, and I was starting to feel smothered. Even at this moment, as I was resting under a tree in our huge backyard, I was accompanied by my mother and Heiyomi, who kept throwing glances at me every few seconds.

Suddenly feeling the need to go to the washroom, I made to stand up, and both my mother and cousin stood to help me.

"I'm fine," I said, smiling weakly.

"Don't protest, Ryoma-chan, it's not going to help," said Heiyomi. "You're too far along in your pregnancy for us to leave you alone. What would we do if you tripped and hurt yourself or the babies, hm?"

We'd had this argument many times before, and I had learned quite a while back that arguing would solve nothing.

I smiled back, and was going to change the topic, when I suddenly felt a kind of pop in my stomach and stopped. My eyes widened as I felt something start trickling down my leg.

Heiyomi looked at me with worried eyes. "Ryoma-chan? Did something happen?"

Trying not to panic, I looked at her with wide eyes and said in a quiet voice, "I-I think my water just broke."

Heiyomi's expression soon matched mine, and she stood still, as if confused as to what to do next. My mother, though, stayed calm and took charge, telling Heiyomi to have someone prepare a limo as she called the hospital.

Before I even realized what was going on, I was already lying on a hospital bed as a nurse instructed me on what to do in a calm voice.

Even though I heard everything she said, only one thing was on my mind.

_Where the hell is Keigo?_

* * *

**Keigo**

"Anyways, Atobe-sama, I propose we-"

He was cut off as the ring of a cell phone cut through the air and everyone started looking around, wondering who had forgotten to turn their phone off before the meeting.

I immediately knew it was mine and picked it up from where it lay on the table. Flipping it open, I said, "Moshi moshi?"

"_Keigo!"_ came Heiyomi's nervous voice from the other side, calling me by my name for the first time. _"You've got to hurry!"_ she said, the tone of her voice urgent. _"Ryoma-chan's gone into labour!"_

"Nani?" I exclaimed, standing up. "Right now?"

"_Hai! Right now! You have to come to the hospital!"_

"H-hai," I said, my voice wavering a little. "I'm on my way."

Grabbing my jacket, I looked at Yuushi, who was sitting to my right and said, "You take over from here. I've got to head to the hospital."

"The hospital?" he echoed, as if he didn't believe his ears. "Wait, you mean Ryoma-chan's gone into labour?"

"Yes," I said, already heading towards the entrance. "As soon as the meeting's over, tell everyone they can go home early!"

Then, without another word, I rushed out and to the lobby, narrowly missing bumping into people several times.

Jumping into my car, I revved the engine and backed carefully out of the parking lot.

As I raced to the hospital, just barely keeping under the speed limit, Ryoma was the only thing on my mind, and every time I had to stop at a red light, I would let out a sigh frustration.

Finally arriving at the hospital about half an hour later, I ran into the lobby and said to one of the secretaries, "I'm looking for my wife, Echizen Ryoma who's just gone into labour."

Nodding, she quickly typed something into her computer, then said a moment later, "Atobe Keigo-san, correct? Your wife is currently in room 13B of the maternity ward."

I was off before she had finished speaking, throwing a quick, "Thank you," over my shoulder.

When I finally arrived at the right room, I saw a distressed Heiyomi sitting outside with Ryoga, both of them too scared to go inside.

Walking right past them, I opened the door and walked straight up to my wife, taking her mother's place by her bed.

"K-Keigo?" she said faintly.

"I'm here," I replied. "It'll be okay," I told her, placing a kiss on her forehead. Seconds later, she let out a bloodcurdling scream, and I sat back, not quite sure what to do.

* * *

**Heiyomi**

I sat outside the room Ryoma was in, my legs pulled up to my chest and my arms wrapped around them. I rocked back and forth, not able to stay still.

Beside me, Ryoga just smiled, albeit a little nervously, and said, "Don't worry Heiyomi-chan, Ryoma will be fine. Keigo-san is here too, now."

I threw him a weak smile. "I know, but I can't help but worry. What if something goes wrong and Ryoma-chan or the babies die?"

"Don't worry, Heiyomi-chan, nothing's going to happen to Ryoma. So far, there hasn't been one complication, and there are lots of skilful doctors here in the off chance that something does happen."

"Yeah, I hope so," I said, not entirely convinced.

Putting my head on my knees, I closed my eyes, listening to the sounds of the hospital. For the past few weeks, as Ryoma's due date came closer and closer, I hadn't had that much sleep, so I wasn't all too surprised when I awoke to Ryoga shaking my shoulder quite a few hours later.

Rubbing my eyes groggily I looked up at my younger cousin whose eyes were shining.

"We can go in, Heiyomi-chan, it's over."

Immediately, I was wide awake as I stood up and followed Ryoga into the room.

I walked into the room to see a tired-looking Ryoma holding two babies, both wrapped in fluffy blue blankets. In Keigo's arms was their third child, wrapped in a pink blanket similar to her brothers'.

Ryoma's expression was gentle as she gazed down at her two little bundles of joy, while Keigo was showing the exact same smile to their daughter and his eyes shone with pride.

They both looked up when we entered and Ryoma said, "Hey, Ryoga. Hey, Heiyomi-chan."

We both went up to her, and placed gentle kisses on her brow.

"So, have you decided on names yet?" asked a curious Ryoga.

Ryoma and Keigo both nodded. "This one on the right is the oldest, and his name is Senri. His brother, who is next oldest, is named Daichi," Ryoma said, smiling fondly.

Keigo nodded in approval before saying, "The youngest is our only daughter, and her name is Hotaru."

"Waah! Such pretty names," I exclaimed quietly.

At that moment, the doctor came in followed by a nurse and, after tying something around all their wrists (in order to differentiate between them), took the newborns away from their parents and carried them out of the room.

Ryoma, though a bit sad, let them go, then laid her head back on the pillow, looking exhausted.

Keigo, his arms free now, enclosed his right hand gently around one of Ryoma's and pushed her sweat-matted hair out of her eyes.

Placing a gentle kiss on her lips, he said, "You must be very tired, you should go to sleep now. I promise I'll stay here with you."

"Okay," Ryoma breathed out. Then, looking over at us, she smiled apologetically and said, "Sorry, you had to wait so long just for me to fall asleep, guys."

"No problem," I said with a smile. "You're a mother now, Ryoma-chan. You better sleep while you still can."

Chuckling, she said, "You're right." Then, after a small pause, "It's a hard concept to wrap my mind around, I still can't believe I'm a mother…" she trailed off and her eyes slowly closed, her exhaustion taking over.

* * *

SkyGem: Yeah, that was a pretty awkward chapter ending XD. Anyways, please do leave a review and tell me what you thought, ne? The next chapter will be the last and will (hopefully) be out in a week at the latest (my promises mean next to nothing, but I'll try my best to keep to this one).


	25. Epilogue: Your Okaachan is Scary

**Keigo**

_4 years later_

I had just arrived home from work, and even before the word, "Tadaima" had left my mouth, a little greenette came running straight at me, screaming.

"Daddy!" shouted my only daughter Hotaru. She had inherited her mother's looks, right down to the green hair, and feline eyes. "There's a monster after me!" she screamed, latching onto my legs.

"A monster?" I asked in an amused voice. The words had barely left my lips when my father-in-law came running around the corner, headed straight for us.

Hotaru hid behind my legs, but he easily caught her and picked her up, tickling her.

Giggling hysterically, she said, "G-grandpa! L-let go! S-s-stop it!"

Smiling, I took my daughter from Nanjiro and she clung to me, still letting out a giggle every few seconds. Frowning, I said in a playful voice, "Are you sure you should be running around so much, oyaji?" I had picked up Ryoma's and Ryoga's habit of calling their father 'oyaji' not too long after the triplets were born.

Frowning, he said, "You insolent brat! How dare you imply that I'm old! I'm still quite young, you know!"

"Right," I said, rolling my eyes.

As the former tennis spluttered angrily, Hotaru's brothers poked their head around the corner.

"Dad!" they shouted at the same time and ran towards me. The older one, Senri, had inherited my silvery hair colour and general face shape, but his eyes were a bright amber, the exact shade of his mother's. Meanwhile, Daichi was the exact opposite. He had my stormy grey eyes, but his face and hair were those of his mother's.

"Hey guys!" I said, bending down to ruffle their hair playfully and kiss them both once on the forehead. "Where's your mother?"

"She and uncle Ryoga are still at their match."

"Still?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "Didn't it start like three hours ago?"

"Last time I checked, they were in at a 167-166 tie-break. It didn't look like it was going to end anytime soon," supplied Nanjiro helpfully.

Letting out a growl, I went to the living room and took a look at the television screen, which was obviously turned to my wife's match. The kids watched every single one of her matches that they could, and if anyone told them they couldn't, they would yell and scream until they were given permission.

"I should never have let her go to this one."

Nanjiro came up behind me and smirked. "Oh, give it a rest, Keigo. You know you would never have been able to change her mind. Anyways, this is going to be her last match for two whole years, you should let her enjoy it."

"Whatever," I said, putting Hotaru down. "Anyways, I'm going upstairs for a shower."

* * *

**Ryoma**

Tiredly dragging myself out of my car, I walked up to the large double doors of the mansion I lived in with my family.

When I got to the doors, I immediately straightened out a little. I knew that Keigo had originally been really reluctant about letting me play this match, and the fact that it had gone on so long had probably put him in an even worse mood.

The moment I stepped over the threshold, my sons and daughter threw themselves at me, shouting, "Mom's home!"

Smiling, I greeted them all with kisses on the forehead, and a "How was your day?"

Only seconds after the attack, Keigo walked in, looking worried.

Snaking his arms around my waist, he gave me a quick peck on the lips and said, "Welcome home."

"Eww!" the three children shrieked at the PDA.

Laughing, I said, "Why don't you guys go outside and play, hm? Mommy and daddy have something important to discuss."

"Hai!" they all shouted simultaneously.

When they were gone, I turned back to my husband and dropped a longer, more passionate kiss on his lips. "Don't look like that. I'm fine."

Sighing, he said, "I know, but I still can't help but be worried. You're three months pregnant after all. You need to be more careful."

I let out a small laugh. We'd only gotten the news about the new arrival a few weeks ago, and already Keigo had gone into overprotective husband mode.

"You're even more nervous than the first time," I teased him. "It'll be fine! Mom is still around, and even though Heiyomi-chan can't come this time around, Kisaki-chan said she'd help too," I said, mentioning my brother's fiancée. "So you don't need to worry your pretty little head off."

He sighed, and a gentle smile softened his features. "I know, but I can't help but worry. It's one of the many things that come with being a father and a husband; always worrying that my precious ones will get hurt."

Laughing, I pulled away a little and headed towards the kitchen. "None of us will get hurt! You need to lighten up, Kei-chan!" I said, feeling a rush of nostalgia at using my nickname for him from when we were still teens.

"Not gonna happen," he said, rolling his eyes as he followed me.

"So, you two are done being all cuddly?" a voice interrupted us and I looked towards the counter to see my father sitting there, eating a slice of cake.

"Hey oyaji!" I said cheerfully.

Then suddenly, I'm not sure why, I suddenly remembered a long-forgotten question I still didn't have the answer to.

"Ne, oyaji?" I asked. "You never did tell me why Ryoga and I were separated when we were little."

Nanjiro just smiled lazily and said, "Oh, well, you know how they say that twins supposedly have this strong bond?"

I nodded.

"Well, a lot of people were saying when you two were born that you would make a deadly doubles pair when you were older because of that so called bond. Well, I wanted to see if that was true. See, I always thought that twins were so close because they did everything together while growing up. So I wanted to see what would happen if you guys grew up separately."

There was a lengthy silence after he finished.

Then, after a long moment, I said, "So the only reason I spent most of my childhood believing I was an only child was because you wanted to test out a stupid superstition?"

Nodding nonchalantly, my father said, "Sounds about right."

"Baka!" I shouted, lunging at him. Unfortunately though, Keigo caught me before I could do any real harm and my father immediately fled the room, shouting, "Wah! Senri! Daichi! Hotaru! You're okaa-chan is so scary!"

_**~The End~**_

* * *

SkyGem: Ahaha, Nanjiro is such an idiot XD Anyways…wow, I really can't believe that it's finally done…this story of mine that's been going on for more than a year is finally done! I suddenly feel so lonely! *Sniffles* It's like Hidden Himesama all over again! I'm going to miss this plotline a lot…although…maybe I'll write a short sequel for this sometime in the future. ^_^ . Anyways, to everyone who stayed with this fic 'til the very end, thank you so very much, and please do leave one last review on your way out. To those of you who haven't already, I would love it if you could check out some of my other fics, ne? There are quite a few Royal Pair ones and some other pairings too! Anyways, goodbye for now, and I look forward to your continued support! *Bows deeply* Sayonara, minna-san.

P.S. Ahaha, I just realized that both this and Hidden Himesama have 25 chapters XD I swear, I didn't plan that. That's so weird, though!


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